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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29845305">Memories of Unwritten Futures</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elveny/pseuds/Elveny'>Elveny</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Final Fantasy XIV</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst and Fluff and Smut, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, Death, Drama &amp; Romance, Echo - Freeform, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Eventual happy end, F/M, Fake Marriage, Falling In Love, Fate &amp; Destiny, Friends to Lovers, Mentioned Scions of the Seventh Dawn (Final Fantasy XIV), Miqo'te (Final Fantasy XIV), Miqo'te Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Mutual Pining, Original Character(s), Promise, Prophetic Visions, but not between who you think it'll be..., will update tags or warnings as required</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 22:48:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>46,524</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29845305</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elveny/pseuds/Elveny</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"I had a memory of being in love with you before I even knew your name."</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Warrior of Light/Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  
</p><p>“So, famous tracker,” Thancred grinned as he leaned back in his seat, a tankard of ale in his hand, as he looked at the Miqo’te Scion before him. They had met in the Quicksand to discuss the next steps over dinner. The waiter had just taken the remains of their food and empty plates away and supplied them with drinks - courtesy of Momodi. “Where’s your entourage of new Scions?”</p><p>Althea huffed a small laugh, quickly drowning it in her drink when she caught Eremia’s annoyed look.</p><p>“Ha ha,” he made drily, his tail flicking as he took a large swig from his drink. “‘Tis not my fault that Ul’dah has a remarkable lack of people gifted with the Echo. We’ve scouted the city for days now, but naught has caught our eye.”</p><p>“I cannot believe that,” Thancred smirked. “Have you seen the dancers?”</p><p>Eremia matched the man’s smirk, his mood improving somewhat at the thought of the performance they had witnessed this afternoon.</p><p>“Ugh,” Althea scoffed, openly rolling her eyes, but it only served to broaden Thancred’s grin.</p><p>“Come on, Thea,” the rogue said, a glint in his eye, “even you have to admit they are-”</p><p>“What news of the Amaljah?” Thea interrupted him, ignoring Thancred’s amused chuckle, and leaned forward onto her elbows with a demanding look.</p><p>Thancred’s expression sobered as he tilted his head. “Actually,” he started - but the rest of what he said disappeared into the background as something caught Eremia’s attention. It was like a tug at his consciousness, the feeling of something familiar and powerful that beckoned to him. His ears twitched and he perked up, his gaze wandering through the inn to find the person that had tickled his ability. It didn’t take him too long to spot her.</p><p>A young Miqo'te woman was standing at the reception, talking to Momodi. A lance was strapped across her back, her long, green hair braided into a simple plait falling over her shoulder. From what he could see, she was a Seeker of the Sun.</p><p>“...mia?”</p><p>“Huh?” he made distractedly before he caught himself and looked at his friends. They followed his eyes and Thancred hummed approvingly.</p><p>“She’s pretty enough,” he nodded, giving him a wink.</p><p>Eremia gave him a dry look. “She has the gift, you ass.”</p><p>"A gifted ass, indeed," Thancred grinned, followed by a short help as Althea smacked him hard on his shoulder. "Ouch!" He rubbed his shoulder and gave Thea an overly sullen look. "I'm just stating a fact."</p><p>Eremia barely suppressed a grin as Thea glowered at their friend. He was not wrong, the woman was lovely and Eremia's next glance at her held a hint of appreciation.</p><p>"A fact utterly irrelevant to our mission," Althea said matter-of-factly.</p><p>"Alright, alright, I'll behave," Thancred said, holding up both hands in laughing defeat. He leaned back to watch the adventurer across the room as she nodded to Momodi and then found a table for herself to the side of the inn, and a thoughtful look replaced the teasing from a moment ago. “Strange.”</p><p>“What is?” Eremia asked.</p><p>Thancred made a small gesture. “Normally, Momodi keeps me informed of any new adventurers that come into town,” he explained, “at least if they’re promising or have weird blackouts. She hasn't said anything about her, though.”</p><p>“Maybe she’s only just arrived?” Thea suggested, but Thancred shook his head.</p><p>“No, I’ve seen her before, she’s been here a while. Momodi would’ve noticed if there was anything special.” His eyebrows were drawn together as he looked at Eremia. “You’re sure about this?”</p><p>Eremia raised an eyebrow. “Famous tracker, remember?” he said somewhat cheekily before he nodded a bit more somber, throwing another look towards the lone woman. She had put her lance against the wall and started to write into what looked like a leather-bound journal. Again, there was this tug at his aether. “But yes, I’m sure.”</p><p>Thancred gave him a little shrug and took his tankard again. “Well then, tracker. Go get yourself your entourage after all. Thea and I will have our fun without you.”</p><p>It was enough to coax another groan from Althea, and Eremia chuckled as he got up. He knew how much Thancred loved to tease their friend just to get that exact reaction out of her - just as he knew that Thea would let him feel her annoyance when they’d be training the next time.</p><p>Quickly, he made his way across the room towards the small table where the adventurer sat by herself. Putting on his best, winning smile, he approached her and lay a hand on the empty chair at the table.</p><p>“Excuse me? May I sit?”</p><p>Eremia knew he was a good-looking man. It had opened him a few opportunities and doors that would otherwise be closed to him, and even more importantly, it usually meant that he made a good first impression. It was especially helpful when he was on the hunt for others with the Echo. But even with all his experience in that area, he wasn’t quite prepared for the woman’s reaction.</p><p>She looked up at him with clear surprise that was immediately replaced by a sweet, if somewhat shy smile - only to freeze for a too-long second as she stared at him. Or rather, through him. Even though she was looking directly into his eyes, he got the impression that she wasn’t actually seeing <em> him. </em></p><p>“Are you alright?” he asked carefully, drawing his eyebrows together.</p><p>She looked as if she woke from a dream and blinked a few times before she mumbled, “Yes.”</p><p>Eremia’s smile brightened as he saw her eyes widen when she focused back on him. The strange absent expression was gone completely, but so was her smile. “Yes to I may sit?”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>The answer came so instantaneously that he was too surprised to be taken aback. </p><p>As if to underline her words, she shook her head. “If you’re looking for someone for the night or company, I’m not the one,” she said, sounding as if she tried to keep her composure and barely managed. He could see the tip of her tail tremble slightly, a clear sign that she was unsettled and tense, nearly as if she had seen something…</p><p><em> Oh. </em> Eremia’s eyes widened in understanding. She must have had a vision! Quickly, he wracked his brain for whatever it was that could have made her think that he wanted to seduce her and barely held back a cringe as he remembered more than one situation that would definitely give her such an impression, especially out of context.</p><p>He made a soothing gesture, accompanied by what he hoped was his most winning smile. “Oh no, you misund-”</p><p>She didn’t even let him finish the sentence and just shook her head again. “Please leave,” she said curtly and dismissed him completely out of her attention, going back to her journal.</p><p>For a long moment, Eremia just stood there like a fool, completely stunned by the short exchange. When she didn’t look back up again, he turned and, still dumbfounded, went back to Thancred and Althea.</p><p>“That must be the saddest exchange I have ever seen,” Thancred commented, laughter in his eyes. “What was that, five words before she sent you packing?”</p><p>This time, Eremia did cringe and let himself fall back on his chair with a sigh. “She’s pretty good at hiding it, so no wonder Momodi never noticed anything, but I’m certain she had a vision when I approached her.”</p><p>“She did?” Althea asked curiously at the same time that Thancred drew in a sharp breath between his teeth.</p><p>“Ouch, that must hurt,” he grinned. “What did you do, Mia, were you indecent?”</p><p>“Ass,” Eremia growled, kicking him beneath the table. “How should I know what she saw?”</p><p>Thancred only laughed.</p><p>“She’s not writing,” Althea remarked suddenly.</p><p>The two men followed her gaze to the Miqo’te, and Eremia immediately saw what Thea meant. The woman was still bowed over her journal, making a decent show of being preoccupied, but the pen in her hand hovered unmoving in the air. She just stared at the page, apparently lost in thought. </p><p>“Alright, kitten, let me show you how the grown-ups do this,” Thancred said, taking another swig from his tankard before he set it down and got up. Before either Althea or Eremia could say something, he sauntered off towards the adventurer.</p><p>“Oh great,” Eremia muttered. “If he actually manages to talk to her, my self-esteem is going to take a sore hit.”</p><p>Thea just snorted, still looking at where Thancred pulled out the chair opposite the adventurer and sat down with a huge smile. “If your self-esteem is dependent on not being rejected even once, you have some serious disappointments ahead of you.”</p><p>He made a fake shocked face at his friend. “You wound me severely, Thea,” he exclaimed, but she didn’t pay attention to him, suddenly sitting up straight.</p><p>“She’s going to leave,” she said matter-of-factly, and his eyes snapped back to Thancred and the adventurer. Just at that moment, the woman closed her journal with a thud and pushed it into her bag, uncaring that a few pages got dog-legged as she did so. The next second, she had grabbed her lance and left the Quicksand in a hurry and without another word.</p><p>Eremia and Althea exchanged a look and walked over to Thancred who greeted them with a helpless shrug.</p><p>“I didn’t even get more than a ‘hello’ in before she bailed,” he said before they could even ask.</p><p>“At least she didn’t <em> run </em> from me,” Eremia said dryly.</p><p>A disgruntled voice from their left made them all turn. “What exactly have you done to that poor girl, pray tell?”</p><p>Momodi had both hands on her hips and gave them a stern look.</p><p>Thancred held up his hands in a soothing gesture. “Momodi, how long have you known me? Do you really think we would do anything indecent to…” He trailed off at the way she raised her eyebrows. “Alright, point taken,” he sighed. “However, I promise, we were perfect gentlemen. We were just trying to talk to her.”</p><p>“We believe she has the Echo,” Althea explained.</p><p>Momodi blinked. “You want to recruit her to the Scions?”</p><p>“At least see if she’s willing to meet with the Antecedent,” Althea nodded.</p><p>The Lalafell woman turned towards the door out of which the adventurer had disappeared and sighed. “Well, it would do her some good, I’m sure of it.”</p><p>“What can you tell us about her?”</p><p>At Eremia’s question, Momodi thought for a moment before she shrugged. “Not too much, I’m afraid. Her name is M’ajah, and she’s been in Ul’dah for a couple of months. Comes from the Black Shroud, originally. The story is the usual, lost her family during the Calamity hence the adventuring to get by. Lovely, shy thing that gets the job done, but she always seemed a bit lonely to me. She doesn’t have many friends.”</p><p>Thancred frowned. “How come?” he asked. “Normally, adventurers easily bond, out of necessity if nothing else. Strength in numbers.”</p><p>Momodi shrugged again. “I don't know. She’s worked a few times with others, but it never seems to stick. If you're right and she has the Echo, maybe it has something to do with that.”</p><p>She looked back to her counter where two people were already waiting for her and added, “Anyway, I’m going to put in a good word for you when I see her next.”</p><p>“Thank you, Momodi,” Althea said.</p><p>The Lalafell gave them a smile and went back to her work. Thea looked at Eremia. “I suppose we’re staying in Ul’dah a while longer after all.” When he shrugged and nodded, she sighed. “Very well.”</p><p>Thancred grabbed his shirt above his heart in a dramatic gesture. “You cannot mean that, Thea! Don’t you relish the thought of enjoying my company for a few more days?”</p><p>She rolled her eyes and went back to their original table without bothering to give him an answer.</p><p>“Thea? Thea!” Thancred called after her, mischief in his eyes.</p><p>Eremia only chuckled. “Give it up already, Thancred.”</p><p>Thancred grinned. “Never, and that’s a promise.”</p><hr/><p>M’ajah came back to the Quicksand long after midnight to go to her room. She had roamed the streets for a while to clear her head after the unexpected encounter earlier until she had settled on an open area somewhere high up in the city, staring at the stars.</p><p>She still wasn’t sure what to think, what to feel about the visions she had earlier. Seeing into someone’s future was bad enough, but seeing herself in someone’s future… it had thrown her off balance so completely that she had panicked, especially when she had glimpsed the second man’s future that was so alien she still had no idea what to make of it. And now, she didn't know what to do. Whether she would see any of them again, whether it meant that she had immediately prevented that future to ever come to pass.</p><p>More than the actual scene she had seen of herself and the Miqo'te man - a flash of the inside of an inn, loud and cheerful, both of them laughing with each other before he reached to touch her cheek in an intimate gesture and leaned towards her - was the feeling accompanying it. Warmth, familiarity, contentment. No, more than contentment. Happiness.</p><p>It stood in such a stark contrast to the rest of her visions that she was still reeling from it all when she slowly walked into the inn and towards the door leading to the rented rooms. She had only come halfway when she spotted the Miqo’te man at the table she had occupied earlier. He was turning a half-full glass between his hands, seemingly lost in thought. He was alone. Earlier, she had barely had enough time to take in his appearance, and as she looked at him now, she had the strangest feeling of looking at someone she already knew but had somehow forgotten. He had copper skin that stood in beautiful contrast to his brilliant silver hair, and even though she couldn’t see his eyes at the moment, she knew they were disparately colored - one pink, one blue, and both of a striking lightness. An auspicious sign.</p><p>M’ajah hesitated for a moment, then she took heart and walked over to him. He noticed her coming towards him when she was already half-way across the room, and his eyes widened in surprise. They were indeed as striking as she remembered - no, as she had seen in the vision, she reminded herself. She didn’t <em> actually </em>know him.</p><p>“Hello,” she said quietly as she stopped a few steps away, barely containing her relief that there was no new vision. </p><p>“Hello,” he answered, giving her a smile as he leaned back in his chair. “I wasn’t sure I’d see you again.”</p><p>M’ajah bit her lip and nodded, heat rising into her cheeks at the thought of how she had dismissed him earlier and then stormed out. Before she could say something, he motioned to the chair across him.</p><p>“Will you join me this time?” he asked. It could have been cheeky, but instead, he spoke carefully as if he didn’t want to spook her again.</p><p>She took a breath and took her lance off to lean it against the wall before she sat down. She still wasn’t sure what she was going to say, how she should even start.</p><p>As if he sensed her insecurity, he smiled again. "You’re M’ajah, right?” At her surprised look, he nodded towards the counter that was empty at this time of the night. “Momodi told us. My name is Eremia,” he said. “And I promise, whatever you saw in the vision, I’m not a bad guy. And I’m not trying to take advantage of you.” Another flash of fangs as he grinned at her, but M’ajah barely noticed the humor in his voice.</p><p>Completely stunned, she stared at him, her thoughts swirling. He knew of the vision? How? She hadn’t told anyone in Ul’dah about them, had been careful not to let anything slip or show. Her heart started to race.</p><p>“You…” she started, her eyes wide, “you know… how do you know of the visions?”</p><p>Eremia leaned forward, bracing his elbows on the table as he looked at her. “It’s called the Echo,” he said. “I have it as well. A gift from the Mother Crystal.”</p><p>Excitement rushed through her at his words, a desperate hope that made her face light up as she pulled her chair closer to the table and leaned towards him. Could it be true, could he actually be someone who shared the burden of these visions?</p><p>“Truly?” she breathed. “You have it as well?”</p><p>Eremia seemed amused by her excitement, and nodded with another smile. “I do. It also enables me to sense others with the gift which is why I approached you in the first place. One of the friends who were with me - Althea, the viera - has it as well.” He tilted his head slightly as he watched her. “We’re part of an organization called the Scions of the Seventh Dawn that is devoted to dealing with threats across Eorzea. Many of us have the Echo, and we were hoping you might want to join.”</p><p>For a moment, M’ajah was overwhelmed by everything she heard, her thoughts swirling. “I, uh…” she started, only to trail off again.</p><p>Immediately, he held up a hand. “Don’t worry, there’s no pressure. We’re offering an opportunity, nothing more. And you don’t have to decide anything right away.” He continued to tell her of the Scions and how he scouted the realms for people with the Echo who could withstand the primals’ tempering.</p><p>M’ajah listened in silence, only asking the occasional question. Eremia seemed completely at ease, even happy to talk to her, and true to his word, he made no advances at all. It put her more and more at ease as well, and eventually, she said, “I’m sorry I ran earlier.” She made a small, embarrassed gesture.</p><p>“You don’t have to apologize.” He grinned. “The look on Thancred’s face was definitely worth it.” His humor was infectious, and she gave him a small smile. Eremia tilted his head. “Why did you, though? Run, I mean?” His grin turned mischievous as he leaned forward. “What did you see in my memories that made you dismiss me so completely?”</p><p>M’ajah’s smile slowly disappeared. “Memories?” she asked, ears twitching slightly. If he had the visions as well - the Echo as he called it - shouldn’t he know what they entailed? “I don’t understand.”</p><p>Eremia blinked, drawing his eyebrows together in confusion. “Did you not have a vision earlier?”</p><p>She just looked at him in utter silence for a moment, then she nodded, drawing her hands back from where they had rested on the table to push them between her thighs to keep them from trembling. “I did,” she confessed quietly. “Both for you and your friend. But I don’t see memories.”</p><p>“Oh,” Eremia said in surprise. “You don’t? What do you see?”</p><p>“You said you have them as well,” she answered back, “shouldn’t you know?”</p><p>He seemed to sense the returning tension in her, and a worried look came into his eyes. “I do have them. But I - and all I know, in fact - see memories. There are additional aspects to the Echo, like me being able to sense others with the gift, but the visions are usually moments from the past.” He seemed thoughtful for a second, then he added, “Although how people experience these visions is different.”</p><p>M’ajah let out a small breath, something inside her settling again. “Oh,” she said softly. It seemed there was much to the Echo that she still didn’t know about. “I see.”</p><p>“So what is it you see?” Eremia asked again with barely contained curiosity in his voice.</p><p>It took her a moment to answer, uncertain whether she should actually tell him. Every time she had done so in the past, it had led to misery. But then she thought back to the moment she had seen between the two of them, and a strange longing rose inside her. It was obvious to her that he could become a friend, someone she actually cared about. She could still see, still <em> feel </em> the connection between them, the trust and tenderness that lay in his touch. Other than the other visions, this one hadn’t been set in stone, so she also knew that it might not come to pass… even if she longed for it. Longed for a connection like the one she saw, for the warmth and happiness that might wait for her. But she couldn’t imagine true friendship without honesty, without him knowing about her gift. About her burden.</p><p>Her heart in her throat, she said quietly, “The future. I see the future.” She saw his eyes widen in astonishment and quickly amended, “Or possible futures. Not all come to pass.”</p><p>“But some do?” he asked.</p><p>M’ajah nodded. “Some are… fixed.” She didn’t have a better word for it, for the visions that were somehow clearer, sharper. For the events that she could not prevent no matter what. “They are just flashes, moments, and often I can’t tell when or where it happens, and never why.” </p><p>Eremia let out a low whistle, looking like he was still trying to wrap his mind around that. “So you saw my future?” His eyes gleamed, and she knew what he would ask before he did. “What did you see?”</p><p>She couldn’t quite help the sliver of discomfort at the question. “I never tell,” she said in a clipped voice.</p><p>“Oh, come on,” Eremia said, the charming smile back on his face. “It’s <em> my </em>future, after all.”</p><p>Her tongue flickered out to wet her suddenly dry lips as she held his gaze, her heart a painful drum in her chest. “Would you like the lie or the truth?” she asked.</p><p>“I beg your pardon?”</p><p>M’ajah nodded towards his bow. “You’re a hunter, right? You will slay a great beast and be celebrated throughout town for it.”</p><p>His ears flicked back and forth, then he narrowed his eyes at her. “That was the lie, wasn’t it?”</p><p>She nodded. “You prefer the truth then?” She still had her hands between her thighs and pressed her legs together in a vain attempt to get some warmth back into them. “Which one would you like to hear about? Your wedding, your death, or the one that has me in it? Only one of them isn’t fixed.”</p><p>Eremia stared at her.</p><p>“Which one would you like to hear about, knowing there is nothing you can do to change it?” she pressed on.</p><p>For a moment, a heavy silence fell; one that she was only too familiar with. Disbelief, curiosity, demand hung in the air… all those things she knew people felt when they thought about her and her visions.</p><p>Eventually, Eremia let out a long breath. “Well, those are some interesting options to choose from.” For a moment, he fixed her with his gaze, and M’ajah thought she could see his mind working. Then his smile came back. “Though it would be fascinating to know how <em> you </em> fit into my future.”</p><p>It was certainly not what she had expected him to inquire about, and M’ajah couldn’t help the blush rising in her cheeks. Eremia’s eyebrows shot up as he noticed it, and she quickly said, “That’s the only one not fixed.”</p><p>He leaned forward, his interest clearly piqued. “But from the looks of it, it’s worth telling me.”</p><p>“Why?” she asked, doing her best to ignore the heat of embarrassment coloring her cheeks, her tail curling around herself. “Something could happen tomorrow that prevents it from ever occurring.” She let out a breath, finally pulling her hands back up. “See, that’s the problem,” she explained with a small gesture. “What if I tell you we become best friends or even lovers, but tomorrow or next week I do something that puts you off so badly that you never want to speak to me again? Wouldn’t you think I’m a villain for making you hope for something that never comes to pass? Or it’s something you really don’t want to happen, and the mere thought disgusts you so much that it’s enough to prevent it.” M’ajah tilted her head. “Or what if I tell you something you don’t want to hear, but it’s fixed, and your every attempt to prevent it from happening only makes it more certain? Or worse, it’s the thing that causes the event?”</p><p>The teasing smile on his face paled while he listened to her, and he nodded slowly. “That already happened to you,” he noted.</p><p>M’ajah nodded unhappily. “More than once. So I stopped talking about the things I see.”</p><p>Eremia gave her a long, pensive look. “Don’t tell me then,” he said softly. “Maybe some things are better left unknown.”</p><p>She gave him a small relieved smile. “Thank you.” She sighed. “When you said you had them too, the visions, I thought… I thought maybe you know how to stop them.”</p><p>“Stop them?” he asked in surprise. “Why would you want to stop them?”</p><p>M’ajah gave him a little shrug. “Wouldn’t you if you were in my shoes?” Her voice was small. “Would you want to be friends with someone like me?”</p><p>He clicked his tongue and shook his head at her. For a moment, she thought he’d reach for her hand, but then he just closed his fingers around his glass. “Why wouldn’t I?”</p><p>A spark of warmth blossomed in her heart at the kindness in his voice, but she knew it was just pity that made him say this. She gave him a sad smile. “Just wait until something horrible happens and you realize I saw it in a vision and told nobody because it’s fixed. You’ll come to despise me yet.” She let out a sigh, then she stood up. “It’s late and I should head to bed,” she said before he could disagree with her. “But thank you for talking to me. I will go to Vesper Bay tomorrow and talk to your Antecedent, hear what she has to say.”</p><p>Eremia got up as well, watching her quietly as she gathered her weapon. Before she turned to leave, she looked up at him and said softly, “You were about to kiss me.” He looked at her in astonishment, and she smiled, the blush back in her cheeks. “In my vision, the one that may or may not come to pass. It was clear that we were very close, happy even, and so I thought that talking to you again was definitely worth a try after I failed so spectacularly the first time.”</p><p>It took him a moment before he found his voice again. “Why are you telling me this after all?” he asked.</p><p>“To make you understand why those visions are not something I want,” she answered. “Because the person you’re going to marry is not me. And <em> that </em> is fixed.”</p><p>M’ajah gave him another small smile, then she turned to return to her room.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>When M’ajah walked into Vesper Bay, Eremia was already waiting for her in the square. He saw her before she noticed him, and he took the chance to just watch her. From the looks of it, she had brought everything she owned. She had a chocobo with full saddlebags walking behind her, the reins loosely in her hand, and apart from the lance she had strapped across her back, he could also see a bow and a staff among her belongings. She paused for a moment when she came through the gate, taking her surroundings in before she ventured further into the small harbor village.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia pushed himself off the palm tree he had leaned against and fell into stride next to her as she walked past him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So you’ve already decided to join us?” he asked her good-naturedly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M‘ajah jumped slightly at the unexpected address, but when she recognized him, a smile came onto her face. “Eremia! What are you doing here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a pleased surprise in her voice, and Eremia couldn’t help the thought that it was rather endearing how her cautious observance was replaced by a look of delight. He gave her a little wink. “You didn’t think you could just walk in and be let through to the Antecedent, did you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her eyes widened a bit, and a bit of color crept into her cheeks. A pale dust of freckles was sprinkled across her nose and cheek that he hadn’t seen in the dim light of the inn the night before, he noted in a corner of his mind. “I, uh… I guess I didn’t think that far,” she confessed, sounding embarrassed, and Eremia chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When Momodi told me you left first thing in the morning, I thought you might not have. But no worries, I’ll introduce you to everyone.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded in the direction of the Waking Sands and started walking again. M’ajah followed him. “You inquired after me?” she asked after a moment, a bit hesitant.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course I did,” Eremia smiled. “It’s my job to bring potential recruits to the Antecedent, after all.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, yes, of course.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was something in her voice that made him give her a curious look, but she was focused on the way ahead. After her initial open joy at seeing him, it felt as if she now put a deliberate distance between them, and he didn’t quite know what to make of it. He decided to try and coax her smile back, and his voice was playful and teasing as he said, “Plus, I must confess that knowing that there’s a potential future where we’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> close has made me curious.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The way she gasped, her blush deepening, made him grin. M’ajah gave him a look that could have been indignation had it not been for the way her lips curled in what was obviously an attempt to keep a smile back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just because there’s a kiss doesn’t mean we’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>very</span>
  </em>
  <span> close!” she huffed. “It could be a one-time thing, or a dare, or… a number of things.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His eyes lit up in delight and his grin widened. “So it is indeed a kiss?” he asked, leaning a bit closer. “I thought I was just </span>
  <em>
    <span>about</span>
  </em>
  <span> to kiss you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I shouldn’t have told you about it,” M’ajah mumbled, deliberately looking ahead, her ears flicking back and forth. “And it might not happen at all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, that’s on us to decide, isn’t it?” he teased.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah made a nondescript sound and then asked in an obvious try to change the topic, “Where are your friends? Thancred and Althea was it, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded, content to go along now that the strange feeling of distance between them had disappeared again. “Yes. They still have some business to attend to, but I’ll join them again soon.” He inclined his head at her. “But first I wanted to see how you were doing and what you’re going to decide. That is, unless you have indeed already decided to join.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She gave him a questioning look, and he nodded at the packed chocobo. “Oh!” she said as she realized what he meant. “Oh, no, I… No, I haven’t decided already. But I wanted to leave Ul’dah anyway, so if the Scion’s offer isn’t something I want to do, I’ll head for Limsa Lominsa next.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They had reached the stables the Scions kept close to the Waking Sands, and Eremia watched as she started to free her chocobo from the saddlebags and reins. “No need to keep you all burdened while I talk, right?” she mumbled to the bird as it chirped at her, stroking his beak and scratching his head with a fond smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia knew that it was her words from the night before which made him pay closer attention to her than he probably would have done normally, but he couldn’t help but notice the gentleness in her touches, the smile in the corner of her lips as she took care of her chocobo. The warm sunlight made her green hair shimmer and gave her skin a golden glow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You like to travel?” he asked abruptly when he realized that he was staring.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked over to him and tilted her head. “Why are you asking?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia cleared his throat and shrugged. “Momodi said you’re from the Twelveswood, but you’ve been in Ul’dah for a while. And now Limsa…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah nodded and collected the saddlebags from the side of the stable. Quickly, he moved to help her, but she shook her head. “I’ve got it, thank you.” She gave him a small smile. “Thank you, though. Where can I put these?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He showed her the tack room and she carefully put them into one corner, just taking her small bundle of weapons as she joined him again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“To answer your question,” she said while they walked towards the entrance of the Waking Sands. “Yes and no. I like discovering new things more than the actual travel, I guess.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His eyebrows shot up. “I always thought it one and the same,” he answered. “After all, it’s the travels that bring you those discoveries.” Traveling was such an integral part of his being that he found it hard to imagine a life without the joy of new sights every other day, of the feeling of wind in his hair, and the freedom of the open road.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, yes,” M’ajah agreed. “But when you’re alone on the road, it gets lonely. And dangerous.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia gave her a sidelong glance. “You never traveled in company?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She shrugged. “Only for a day or two when I took a job with others.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It seemed Momodi had been right in her assessment that she didn’t have many friends if she had traveled the realm on her own. Before he could think of something to say, though, Tataru jumped up as they came in and not soon after, Minfilia greeted them both in the Solar.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia had more than once witnessed how Minfilia’s grace and open friendliness won the hearts of even hardened adventurers. As he watched M’ajah’s initial reservation change to careful joy, he was certain that she would indeed join the Scions even before she actually agreed to Minfilia’s offer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You said you have studied the Echo in Sharlayan,” M’ajah said hesitantly after they had spoken about the arrangements of their working together.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Minfilia nodded. “We have.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A short glance to Eremia was enough to tell him what M’ajah was about to ask and he gave her an encouraging nod. “Eremia said he only knows people with the Echo who can see into other people’s memories,” she told Minfilia. “Have you ever met anyone who has… other visions?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Minfilia gave her a smile. “Indeed I have. A friend of mine, for example, can sense other people’s thoughts; another sees glimpses of the future, and yet another has a sense of premonition, oftentimes knowing what others will say or do before they know it themselves. ”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The future?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia could hear the sudden hope in M’ajah’s voice, and his heart clenched in sympathy as he remembered how she had spoken about how she would rather be rid of the gift.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Minfilia smiled. “Why do you ask?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She hesitated for a moment before she said, “I… I see the future, too.” In halting words, she explained the extent of her power as she had done to Eremia the night before.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Minfilia listened patiently. When M’ajah was finished, she nodded slowly, “I see.” She thought for a moment, hand coming to her heart. “That must be quite the burden,” she said compassionately. “Not knowing when to tell the other what you have seen or how it will influence what you…” Suddenly, she trailed off, her eyes becoming distant.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia perked up, but before he could say anything, a sharp pain shot through his head and he pressed his hand to his forehead with a small hiss. As if from afar, he heard M’ajah’s alarmed voice, “Are you alright?”, then he saw…</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>A tall elezen woman with kind, tired eyes, standing before a Miqo’te girl of maybe fifteen years. “Listen, girl, we just don’t have enough space, and we need it for the little ones who cannot fend for themselves. With so many homes destroyed, so many people dead in the Calamity and the refugees fleeing the snow in Coerthas, there’s just not enough space.” “But…” M’ajah started, only to trail off as the elezen sighed. “You hunted with your mother, yes? I know at the guild in Gridania, they’re looking for anyone who can help, I’m sure they’ll give you a place to stay if you make yourself useful. I’m sorry.” The girl just nodded, her eyes hollow as she turned away and walked into the falling darkness, a bow strung across her back.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>A young man, his face distorted with rage and grief, yelling at M’ajah. She was older, but not by much. “This is your fault! You told him a lie and now he’s dead!” A group of five people - hunters or adventurers from the looks of it, most of them barely adults - was standing around them, watching them with pitiful, sad, or disdainful eyes. M’ajah’s eyes were tearful, but she did not back down. “‘Twas no lie! I spoke the truth! I </span>
  </em>
  <span>saw</span>
  <em>
    <span> it!” she threw back at him. The man spit on the ground. “Whatever you saw, the things you told him made him so giddy he paid no attention to what was happening around him, and now the Ixal have claimed yet another of our ranks.” He turned and left, and one by one, the others followed him until M’ajah was alone.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Another group of people, sitting around a fire in the midst of the Twelveswood. “Of course you can tell us,” a Miqo’te woman laughed, slapping M’ajah onto the back who looked at her with a huge grin on her face and a bottle of wine in her hand. “We’re your friends, who if not us?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The same woman, looking broken as she sat on a chair next to a bed in which someone lay motionless. “You should have warned us.” “I didn’t know,” M’ajah whispered. There was a long silence. “What good is your gift then?” the woman asked. Another silence. “I don’t know,” M’ajah whispered. Then she slowly turned and left the room.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The ruins of a house, overgrown and old at the edge of the Twelveswood. M’ajah stared at it for what felt like hours, standing motionless, eyes hollow. Behind her, her chocobo had started grazing, already packed. She just stood there while the sun wandering over the sky until a cold wind made her shudder. Pulling herself out of her thoughts, M’ajah shook herself and went after her chocobo which had wandered away quite some distance already. She did not turn back before she mounted and rode away.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia and Minfilia came out of the vision at the same time. His head was still throbbing, but he knew it would disappear as quickly as it had come, and he frowned as he rubbed his hand over his forehead. In all the years he had had the visions, the searing pain as they started had never vanished. It was the reason why he had at first dismissed them as just being overworked. M’ajah looked at them with wide eyes as they shook their heads and exchanged a look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” M’ajah asked - again, if Eremia remembered correctly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” he said, his voice somewhat rough. He was still reeling from the bottomless sadness he had felt throughout the vision, the devastating pain as she was left alone, again and again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That…” Minfilia started, letting out a long breath as she fixed M’ajah with her eyes. “Hydaelyn oftentimes deems it wise to send the same vision to all whose gift is similar when they are at the same place. I, </span>
  <em>
    <span>we,</span>
  </em>
  <span> partook of your memories.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah swallowed, letting her hands sink back down again that she had reached out to them both as if she was ready to jump to either should the need arise. “Oh,” she said softly, before she seemed to catch herself. “Well, then I hope it was nothing too embarrassing that you saw, but one of my more heroic moments,” she joked, a forced smile on her lips even though her eyes held nothing but barely veiled anguish. The tip of her tail was trembling again, just like it had done yesterday. “Like the time when I killed that morbol by myself and not that one night at Buscarron’s.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“M’ajah…” Eremia started before he even had an idea what he wanted to say, but Minfilia beat him to it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How old were you when the Calamity destroyed your home?” she asked softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The silence laying between them was heavy and long, and when he saw the pained look in M’ajah’s eyes, Eremia wanted nothing more but to walk over to her and pull her into his arms, to offer some kind of comfort. Comfort that was hollow, he knew.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fifteen,” she eventually said quietly. “It was… the first vision I had.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh,” Minfilia breathed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah nodded, looking at her hands. “I thought it was just a nightmare. I even told my mother, and we both laughed about it. No such destruction could actually happen, right?” A joyless smile came to her face, disappearing again after a moment. “But then it did. And I was the only one not at home even though I was supposed to be there. In the vision, I saw all of us die together. But I was late.” She took a deep breath, her voice more firm again as she added, “I dug them out, buried them, and went to find a job. Which is how I came to adventuring. And now I’m here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>And now I’m here.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Eremia nearly laughed bitterly at the four words with which she overplayed all that had happened between. Like so often after a vision, it was difficult to draw himself out of the emotions he had felt as his own, but this time, it was somehow worse. Like the Echo lingered, clinging to his very soul. All the misery and devastation and loneliness… and still, she smiled and cared. It took him another few breaths before he was able to pull back into himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Minfilia looked at M’ajah with softness in her gaze. “And now you are here,” she repeated quietly. Apparently, she had come to a decision, for she straightened slightly and said, “And full glad I am that you decided to stay. I am sure you will find many friends among our ranks.” Her smile widened. “Friends with an understanding of your gift.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah let out a breath and something of the tension in her shoulders eased. “I hope so,” she smiled back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia was still looking at M’ajah when Minfilia turned to him, starting slightly when she addressed him. “Eremia, I know you’re wanted back in Ul’dah, so if you could fetch Tataru for me, I’m sure she can show M’ajah around.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” he answered before he thought better of it. At Minfilia’s surprised look, he cleared his throat and gave her a little bow. “Forgive me, Antecedent. My business in Ul’dah is concluded, so there is no need to bother Tataru. I’m happy to do it myself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” Minfilia said, her smile knowing. “Thank you, Eremia. Welcome to the Scions, M’ajah.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>M’ajah waited until they were out of the Solar before she stopped and turned to Eremia.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t have to do this just because you pity me,” she said in a stilted voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His ears flicked as he tilted his head. “Who says I pity you?” he asked carefully.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She huffed. “Your face when you stared at me after your vision.” She could still see it, the pained, sympathetic look in his eyes, the involuntary twitch of his hands as if he wanted to reach for her. She didn’t want his pity, she didn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>need</span>
  </em>
  <span> his pity. Raising her chin somewhat, she added, “Whatever you saw, it’s in the past, it has no meaning anymore, so please, stop looking at me like I’m made of glass and going to break any second.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shook his head. “M’ajah, feeling for someone is not the same as pitying someone,” he said kindly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah drew her eyebrows together in an irritated frown, but before she could tell him off, the teasing smile that slowly became a familiar sight was back on his lips. “Besides, I’m doing this out of curiosity,” he said light-hearted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Curiosity?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia gave her a wink. “Of course. I </span>
  <em>
    <span>really </span>
  </em>
  <span>want to know what happened at Buscarron’s that you think is so embarrassing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The words hit her so out of the blue that she couldn’t help the laugh bubbling up in her. His grin widened at the sound, and even though M’ajah knew he had done this deliberately to put her at ease, it helped indeed. The strange mix of embarrassment and irritation from a moment ago dissipated and was replaced by amusement. For a moment, she wondered at the ease with which he managed to reassure and cheer her up as she found herself returning his smile with a touch of the same tease he had given her before. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened,” she said a bit cheekily, “includes too much alcohol, a teenager pretending to be both older and much more experienced than she actually is, and all the bad decisions this entails. And that is all you’ll get.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia laughed, the sound carefree and open, and M’ajah found herself smiling along. She couldn’t remember when she had laughed with someone the last time, truly and honestly laughed, and she knew that if nothing else, she’d be grateful to Eremia for that alone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are aware that these words are enough to make me envision the worst kind of embarrassment?” he asked, his voice full of amusement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She chuckled. “Believe me, it was even worse.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His eyes lit up even more. “Now you </span>
  <em>
    <span>have</span>
  </em>
  <span> to tell me!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah cocked her head. “I believe you wanted to show me around, yes?” she said innocently as if he hadn’t said anything.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia looked like he wanted to press her further, but then he just shook his head with a gleam in his eyes. “I’ll get it out of you eventually,” he said as her smile widened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’d be the first.” She shouldered her weapon’s pack again. “So, about the Waking Sands?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Eremia showed her around the Waking Sands, introducing her to the people who were present and helping her bring her luggage to one of the shared bedrooms most of the Scions used when they were in the Waking Sands. The evening found them in the communal room among several other Scions, all of whom did their best to include their newest member into their tales and talking about the various logistics of their organization. Apparently, most of them were in a Free Company on top of being a part of the Scions and one of the Grand Companies.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you in a Free Company as well?” she asked Eremia who sat next to her, close enough that their arms were touching. He had barely left her side the whole day, and as she looked at him, a warmth spread through her whole body that had nothing to do with the drink in her hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why?” he asked back, grinning. “Are you interested… in joining?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The small deliberate pause made her heart take a little flip and she quickly hid her blush behind her drink before she shrugged. “I never had the opportunity.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The gleam in his eyes told her that he had noticed her blush, but to his credit, he did not tease her for it. Instead, Eremia explained, “Well, everyone puts in a percentage of their earnings to maintain the house and stables, and in turn you get the perks of having your own room, amazing friends, like me,” a deliberate wink towards her, “and a few other things.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked at him in astonishment. “And anyone can join?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia laughed. “No, not anyone. But you? Sure. I’d vouch for you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why?” The question was out before she could stop herself. “You barely know me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was something in the way Eremia’s smile softened that made her heart beat faster. “Don’t I?” he asked, and for once there was not even a hint of a tease in his voice. “You saw my future, I saw your past… I would argue that this is more than most people know of each other.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was this simple acceptance of what she had seen, of what </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> had seen that unraveled the last threats of that tangled knot of uncertainty and fear in her heart. M’ajah let out a low breath as she looked at him, her whole face lighting up in relief and something that felt suspiciously like happiness.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I would love to join,” she said softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia smiled down on her. “Good.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When M’ajah went to bed that night, the slight haze of drunkenness on her mind was the result not only of alcohol but of companionship, flirting, and the delicious, warm feeling of having made a true connection with someone. The image of her vision, of Eremia leaning towards her to kiss her, already started to blur together with the events of the evening, of him sitting next to her, laughing with her and others, always with that charming smile on his lips. The feelings of familiarity, attraction, and longing certainly felt suspiciously similar. M’ajah knew she should try to stop this attraction before it even began. He was going to marry another after all, so anything that could blossom between them was doomed from the start. She </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew </span>
  </em>
  <span>that. But as she lay in the dark, wrapped in her blanket and stared towards the window through which she could hear the song of the ocean, all she could think of was just how giddy and happy the slight flutter in her stomach made her feel. She wouldn’t want to trade it for the world.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The next morning, Eremia was gone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, don’t worry, he’s just like that,” Arenvald told her with a good-natured smile when she worked up the courage to inquire after him over breakfast in the common room. “Drops in and out as he pleases. But it could of course also be that he was called away. I hear there was some trouble with the Amaljah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah nodded, somewhat subdued. “True, I heard something similar,” she agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>While the other Scions continued to chat to her, she tried her best to push the sting of disappointment from her mind. Hadn’t she reminded herself of the impossibility of anything between them just a few hours ago? Even more importantly, there wasn’t even anything going on, he was just being friendly. He did not owe her anything; neither his presence nor an explanation of his absence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>‘He was friendly because it’s job, Ajah,’ she told herself. ‘Nothing more.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And it was not like he was the only one trying to be nice to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Arenvald, A’aba, and Aulie did their best to include M’ajah into their little group, showing her around Vesper Bay and introducing her to any new faces that showed up. When they received an assignment a few days later, they asked her to come along.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For the following days, M’ajah traveled through Thanalan with the Scion group, helping a few people along the way to earn a bit of coin in addition to what was provided for their main mission. When she returned with them to the Waking Sands a week later, a new lightness was around her heart she had rarely ever known before. The fact alone that they shared the Echo took such a weight from her shoulders that M’ajah only now realized just how much of a burden keeping it secret had been. They did not judge her when she shied away from speaking too much about the things she had seen or tried to convince her to tell them more. Instead, they spoke about the different experiences each of them had with the Echo, and about how difficult it could be to know such intimate details about another person that had not been voluntarily shared. Even though each of their experiences was unique, the general familiarity with the Echo was enough to form a bond between them all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That evening, they were all sitting around the common room in a joyous and delighted atmosphere, and M’ajah was laughing at something Aulie had said when a familiar voice was suddenly next to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“See, I told you you’d make friends.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her head whipped around in surprise, and her treacherous heart leaped as she saw who was directly next to her. “Eremia! Where did you suddenly come from?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He grinned, settling down in their round among a big hello from the others. “Thea and I had a rather long debriefing and only now came out of the Solar, so we missed your return. I hear the first mission of our newest member was quite the success.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah wrinkled her nose, but the others laughed. “She’s great,” Arenvald said approvingly. “Focused and quick. A great addition to the Scions indeed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re exaggerating,” M’ajah said, her ears flicking in embarrassment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t sell yourself short,” Eremia said. “From what I hear, you took to the group like a fish to water.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guys, stop it, you’re embarrassing her, can’t you see?” Aulie said, clicking her tongue at the two men.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you.” M’ajah smiled at the elezen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, where are you heading next?” A’aba asked Eremia.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m back to Gridania, Thea is going on to Limsa,” he told them before looking up at the person approaching the table. “Oh, Thea! M’ajah, you remember Althea? She was in Ul’dah with us when we met.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, yes, of course,” M’ajah smiled at the tall viera that came to the table, setting another bottle between them before she settled down with them. M’ajah only vaguely remembered seeing her at the Quicksand that day when Eremia had approached her, and it was only now that she got a true glimpse of her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She was both powerful and attractive, long dark hair that was half braided back, colorful pearls in the small braids that clinked slightly as she sat down. Her face was softer than she would have expected from the clear strength that lay in every movement, every gesture. Her green eyes were sharp and attentive as she looked at the others, her smile careful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But that was not what made M’ajah stare at her before she caught herself. It was </span>
  <em>
    <span>her.</span>
  </em>
  <span> This was the woman that would marry Eremia! She could still see it clearly in front of her eyes, the way they presented their rings, laughing happily as they walked through the aisle. They already knew each other! She had thought that Eremia would meet her one day and fall for her, but no, they were actually already friends, probably caring deeply for each other. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A small nudge from the side made her perk up, and M’ajah realized she had tuned everything out as she had remembered the vision. “Hm?” she asked, blinking quickly and with a hasty smile upon her lips.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“More wine?” A’aba asked, and she nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, thank you.” She could definitely use it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia gave her a long look as if he sensed that something was up. “Another vision?” he asked quietly, but she quickly shook her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. No, I was just… lost in thought. No vision.” M’ajah gave him a quick smile before she took a huge sip from her wine. It ran warm and heady down her throat, spreading from her belly through her whole body. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oh. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Maybe that had been a bit fast.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia raised his eyebrows questioningly as he watched her, an amused smile in the corner of his lips, then he raised his glass towards her and took a sip himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So what do you say?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah’s ears flicked in confusion. “To what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You really haven’t been listening, huh?” Eremia chuckled. “To joining me on the trip to Gridania. I could use the extra hand.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Since I am needed elsewhere and you just finished your assignment, it would ease matters. Plus you are familiar with the Twelveswood as well,” Althea added. “The Antecedent has given her approval already.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a moment, M’ajah did not know what to say. Being alone with Eremia after she had just decided to get him out of her head wasn’t quite the ideal situation, especially not when she had just realized that he was already close to his spouse-to-be. But on the other hand, she would have to deal with that situation sooner or later anyway - maybe it was actually better now than later.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I haven’t been home for quite some time,” she confessed, hoping that it would suffice to explain her hesitation. “But yes, of course. I’m happy to join.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia’s smile widened, his eyes lighting up, and M’ajah’s heart beat a tad quicker. ‘Oh yes,’ she sighed inwardly, trying in vain to stop the tingle in her belly. ‘This will be great.’</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Come talk to me on <a href="https://elveny.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The problem was that it was indeed great.</p><p>Since they had to bring several supplies with them, they had forgone using the Aetheryte network and traveled by chocobo, and each evening, M’ajah lay in her bedroll and cursed herself for not being better on guard.</p><p>If only Eremia wasn’t so easy to talk to. Each time she tried to put some distance between them, he managed to break through her every effort with a few words and a smile or light-hearted flirt. A few times, she had looked up to find him watching her, but he never seemed bothered by her catching him at it. Instead, he always gave her a wink that had enough suggestiveness to be flirty. And yet, even though he obviously loved to flirt - and she had seen him do it with several other people as well - he never tried to cross any lines. There were no tries to touch her, no indecent questions.</p><p>On the contrary, he seemed genuinely interested in her and answered her own questions with disarming openness. She learned that he grew up in the Twelveswood as well, but other than her, he still had his family. His mother worked as a carpenter, while his older sibling searched the woods for the botanists. His father, true to the Keeper of the Moon traditions, was roaming the Twelveswood and only turned up at their family home every few months. Apparently, he was a hunter as well and had taught Eremia the basics of archery during the times he was with his family. The warmth with which he spoke about his family was truly endearing, painting a clear picture of the woman who had raised him and his sibling mostly on her own as someone who was warm but did not tolerate any shenanigans. Which meant that Eremia and his sibling were hiding on a tree every other day to avoid making her angry, even though they knew that the worst they had to expect was additional chores. M’ajah rarely laughed as often as when he spoke with gleaming eyes of the trouble they had gotten into.</p><p>And then, there was his voice.</p><p>Or, to be more exact, his singing.</p><p>The first time Eremia started to sing was on their first night camping. A hum turned into a few words dancing on the melody while he unloaded the chocobos and M’ajah was making a fire, then he started to truly sing, and she nearly forgot to breathe. It was clear that he wasn’t singing for an audience, just to himself, and yet it was utterly mesmerizing.</p><p>His voice was warm and low, the melody flowing from his lips with a lightness and beauty that wrapped itself around her heart. Her hands hovered in the air for a second before she let them sink down, becoming utterly still as she listened. This was more than the usual tavern songs one heard, even more than the minstrels who sometimes graced the crowds with their singing. His song was truly filled with soul, and for a fleeting moment, it was as if she could actually see the rolling hills from his song before her eyes and feel the warm winds on her skin.</p><p>It was over far too quickly, his voice trailing off as he caught her staring at him with an enchanted look on her face.</p><p>“That was so beautiful,” she breathed. For the first time since she knew him, Eremia looked bashful, his tail swishing through the air as he smiled at her.</p><p>“Thank you.” </p><p>She was certain that she still had a dreamy look in her eyes as she asked, “Where did you learn to sing like that?”</p><p>Eremia put the saddlebags down and shrugged. “I learned the craft from another bard.”</p><p>Her eyes widened. “You’re a bard!” Astonishment was in her voice as she said, “I heard stories about them. It’s said they could turn the tide of a fight with their songs.” M’ajah had always thought those tales were pure exaggeration, but having heard even such a short part of Eremia’s song, she was half-certain she might believe them after all. “Is that true?”</p><p>He laughed. “Let’s hope you never have to find out.”</p><p> </p><p>Returning to the Black Shroud after nearly a year felt both stranger and more wrong than M’ajah had anticipated. The closer they came, the more silent she got, an unexpected weight upon her breast as she saw the towering greens ahead of them. As they rode through the first trees, she couldn’t help the shudder of apprehension running down her back. </p><p>The last few months she had spent here before she left for Ul’dah had been the loneliest she had ever been. Rumors about her had spread enough through the adventuring guild so that she received no offers to join anyone for bigger jobs. She still earned enough to get by with smaller jobs, but it was getting harder. But worse than the monetary issues were the conversations that quieted when she walked by, the amused or derogatory looks. The last weeks before she had left for good, she had barely come to Gridania itself, only venturing into the city when it was absolutely necessary. Eventually, not even her favorite places in the woods were enough to bring her some peace of mind, and she had left, trying to get rid of that hollow feeling of loneliness and despair that seemed to linger behind every corner and in every shadow.</p><p>It had partially worked, Thanalan’s sun burning away the shadows around her - but as they followed the road leading deeper into the Twelveswood, they seemed to close around her again. As if they had only waited for her.</p><p>Eventually, she halted her chocobo.</p><p>Eremia saw it from the corner of his eye and stopped as well, giving her an inquiring look. “Everything alright?” he asked.</p><p>M’ajah nodded, only to let out a sigh before she shook her head. “I, uh… I think I need a break.”</p><p>It was only shortly after midday, but Eremia immediately agreed. “Good idea. I know a clearing not far off with a small stream, we can rest there.”</p><p>She followed him through the trees, avoiding the buzz of a swarm of hornets that apparently had their nest close by. It was a warm day, and the chocobos seemed just as content to laze in the sun as they were.</p><p>Eremia asked no questions as they sat down next to the stream, giving her the space and calm to sort her thoughts. She had taken off her boots, walking barefoot through the water that pearled clear and cool around her ankles. Eventually, she stopped, turning her palms downward and her face towards the boughs far above them. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, focusing on the stillness inside herself and the warmth of the sun on her skin, the feeling of the stream on her bare skin, and sent her mind outward.</p><p><em> I’m back</em>, she told the forest and the elementals all around them. <em> Will I be welcome? </em></p><p>For a long moment, nothing happened. Then, a whisper of air whisked around her, making the leaves of the trees above them rustle and bringing the sweet scent of moss and flowers, of decay and darkness to her, reminding her of budding sprouts and deep roots, of rotting leaves and reaching branches. That deep, old scent of the forest she had loved so much as a child when she had roamed these trees with all the curiosity and carelessness of someone still innocent. There was no direct answer, but then, she hadn’t expected one. Instead the feeling of soothing calmness was enough to smooth the tension from her forehead. Beyond it were all the little things that ailed the Twelveswood, some dark and dangerous, some merely annoying and pesky. She would have to talk to Brother E-Sumi-Yan about them, now that she had announced her return to the woods.</p><p>M’ajah didn’t know how long she had stood in the stream, but when she opened her eyes again, her feet were numb from the cold water, like needle pricks upon her skin. Quickly, she returned to the warmth of the sun-kissed grass and walked back to Eremia.</p><p>He watched her intently. “What do the elementals have to say?” he asked curiously.</p><p>At her surprised look, he shrugged. “My mother used to be a Conjurer as well. She did something similar sometimes. Mostly, she rushed off shortly afterwards.”</p><p>M’ajah gave him a small smile. “I won’t rush off suddenly.”</p><p>He smiled back. “Good,” he said simply.</p><p>She sat down next to him again, plucking a small flower and turning it between her fingers. “I just… needed to reconnect. When I left here, I wasn’t in a very good place, and coming back reminds me of that time,” she told him quietly.</p><p>“I know,” Eremia answered equally quietly. At her inquiring look, he added nearly apologetically, “It was a part of the memories we saw. The moment you left, I mean. Standing before the ruins of a house…”</p><p>“Ah,” she murmured, eyelids fluttering as she looked back to the flower.</p><p>“I felt your pain,” Eremia said very softly after another moment of silence. “My visions, I experience them as the person they’re coming from. So… I know how you felt. How alone.”</p><p>M’ajah just nodded, her eyes fixed on the delicate yellow blossom in her fingers. She still didn’t know exactly what he and Minfilia had seen from her past, and a part of her didn’t even want to know. But if he had experienced her memories as she had lived through them… maybe she ought to know.</p><p>Taking a breath to steel herself, she looked up at him - but before she could ask, she saw the shadow moving behind him.</p><p>She reacted before she had even properly processed what she had seen, throwing herself onto Eremia and pushing him down into the grass. Where his head had been, a volley of seeds flew past them. In a corner of her mind, she noticed with a surge of heat the feeling of his body pressed flush against her, the strength of his arms as he instinctively held onto her, but there was no time to linger on the way it made her breath stutter. Grabbing the lance lying next to her, she jumped up in the same fluid movement. The next second, she was in the air and a low snarl fell from her lips, teeth bared as she descended upon the enormous Kedtrap slithering towards them.</p><p>A hissing sound came from the Kedtrap as it swished to the side, barely escaping the deathly tip of her lance, and M’ajah wasted no time before she jumped back again, narrowly avoiding the teeth-like thorns that rimmed the inner part of the carnivorous plant. She sank into another attack stance as a thrum of musical notes made the air shudder around them. A quick glance to Eremia showed her that he had already put an arrow upon his bow, the attached harp still humming from where he had strummed it. And, Twelve, she could actually feel the power in the music. It sent a surge of energy through her and her eyes lit up as she taunted the Kedtrap forward. An arrow flitted through the air, burying itself in its side nearly at the same time that she whirled around to nail it to the ground driving her lance neatly through its head. It twitched twice, then it lay silent and dead.</p><p>Purple ooze dropped from her lance as she pulled it out with a sharp tug, still breathing hard from the rush of the sudden if short fight.</p><p>“I see now what Arenvald meant,” Eremia said, letting his bow sink and giving her an appreciative look. “You <em> are </em> quick.”</p><p>M’ajah wiped her hair out of her face and gave him a deadpan look. “I have been doing this for a while already,” she reminded him dryly. “It’s not like I’ve only started adventuring with the Scions.”</p><p>Eremia chuckled. “I know. I apologize if I made it sound like I was doubting your abilities.”</p><p>She shook her head and wiped her lance. “Don’t worry about it.” Taking another calming breath, she came back to him and gave him a tentative smile. “The legends are indeed true. I could feel the music.”</p><p>He let his fingers run tenderly over his bow before he gave her one of his teasing winks. “And that was even without me singing.”</p><p>There was something in the way he said it that made her heart take a little flip. The rush of the fight was still lingering in her veins, making her bold. “Will you show me one day?” she asked playfully, tilting her head. “The power of your voice?”</p><p>His eyes narrowed slightly, and a warm shiver ran down her spine as he took a small step towards her. “Was that a request?” he asked, his voice dropping a notch.</p><p><em> Oh Twelve, </em> M’ajah thought, her breath catching as the yearning tingle in her stomach exploded into a whole swarm of butterflies. <em> Yes, </em> she wanted to tell him, <em> yes it was, show me all the emotions your songs can evoke. </em></p><p>But just as she opened her mouth to say it, her eyes fell onto his hand where it held the bow. The hand where one day soon a ring would sit. He was promised to another by fate, she reminded herself. There was no claim she could hope to make on him that would last… and she wasn’t certain she was ready to throw herself into something that was bound to fail. Still, it was hard to shake the tension that simmered between them, and her heart was still beating hard as she laughed somewhat breathlessly. She just hoped he didn’t notice.</p><p>“Just a question,” she said lightly, taking a step back and looking deliberately anywhere but at him. “But we shouldn’t linger. If there is one Kedtrap, there surely are others.”</p><p>She quickly went to collect her boots where they still lay next to the stream and put them back on. She thought she could physically feel the heat of his eyes upon her skin, burning into her as they gathered their things and led the chocobos back onto the main road to continue their path.</p><p>It did nothing to ease the thrum of her heartbeat.</p><p> </p><p>Evening was already falling as they reached Buscarron’s Druthers, and they decided to spend the night. </p><p>“Ajah, is that you?” Buscarron exclaimed with a big grin on his face as she came in. “Welcome back! I thought you left the Twelveswood.”</p><p>M’ajah gave him a warm smile as they settled down at the bar. “Well, I did. But we have business here, so…”</p><p>He wiped the counter before her before he put down a bottle of wine and a glass. “We?” He gave her an interested look. “Well, then I better get another glass, huh?” As he put it down, he asked, “So, you have found another company to join?”</p><p>Even though he tried to sound genuinely delighted, she couldn’t help but notice the hesitation in his voice.</p><p>“I have,” she said warmly. “And I… I think it might last this time.”</p><p>There was no mistaking the way Buscarron’s eyes lit up. “Is that so? Well, girl, good for you! What’s the name of the company, do I know them?”</p><p>“The Scions of the Seventh Dawn,” she answered, pouring both herself and Eremia a glass. “I hadn’t heard of them before they approached me, but-”</p><p>“Oh, I did,” Buscarron interrupted her, sounding genuinely pleased. “I’m happy for you, they’re good people.”</p><p>“Of course you would say so, we saved your ass a few times, didn’t we?” Eremia joined the conversation and sat down next to M’ajah. He had tended to their luggage while she had gone ahead into the tavern.</p><p>“Ha!” Buscarron laughed. “Eremia, I should have known it would be you.”</p><p>“Hello, Buscarron, good to see you,” Eremia grinned and the two men clasped hands.</p><p>“You know each other?” M’ajah asked curiously.</p><p>“Oh, do we ever!” Buscarron exclaimed. “I served him his first beer back when he was barely out of his diapers and first ventured into the woods as a hunter in his own right.”</p><p>Eremia scoffed. “Barely out of his diapers,” he mumbled, shaking his head. “As if.”</p><p>M’ajah chuckled.</p><p>“You don’t get past Buscarron if you’re hunting in the Twelveswood. I know the Carline Canopy in Gridania always thinks they are those best informed, but let me tell you, nothing happens in these woods that Buscarron doesn’t know about,” he added with a grin.</p><p>“Oh, I know,” M’ajah nodded good-naturedly. “I’ve been here a few times myself over the years.”</p><p>Eremia’s eyes lit up. “Oh, true! The embarrassing night you won’t talk about!”</p><p>Buscarron laughed loudly while M’ajah groaned. “Oh, that was indeed a night to remember. Shouldn’t its anniversary come up again soon?” Ignoring M’ajah’s quick shake of her head, he turned to Eremia with a familiar grin. “She had just joined an adventurer’s group and they came here to celebrate both their first successful mission and her birthday. Twelve help me, it was one of <em> those </em> nights, you know? Nothing could stop that party but the dawn.”</p><p>Eremia was listening only too eagerly while M’ajah covered her face with her hand. “Buscarron, please, don’t remind me,” she said half-heartedly while he leaned forward.</p><p>“Oh no, Buscarron, please, remind her,” he grinned.</p><p>The tavern owner laughed again. “If the lady does not want to tell the tale…” he shook his head, even though his eyes still gleamed.</p><p>“M’ajah, come on,” Eremia turned back to her. “What can be so embarrassing about a birthday party?”</p><p>“You mean apart from the dancing on the tables?” she mumbled, taking a big sip from her glass, her cheeks burning.</p><p>Eremia laughed.</p><p>“She wasn’t the only one, though,” Buscarron added, chuckling. “As I said, it was one of <em> those </em>nights. Didn’t you leave with two-”</p><p>“Shhhh,” M’ajah hushed him loudly, deliberately ignoring the way Eremia’s eyes widened. “Listen, Buscarron, do you have something to eat for us as well?”</p><p>The barkeep laughed again but was kind enough not to press the topic. “Sure thing, there’s stew and fresh bread. Let me get something for you.”</p><p>“Thank you,” she nodded, taking her glass and the bottle and motioning towards one of the tables. “We’ll be over there.”</p><p>Eremia didn’t say a single word as they settled down at the table, but M’ajah could nearly physically feel him vibrating with curiosity, and it took her only a moment until she sighed loudly and turned to him. “Alright, fine, I’ll tell you,” she gave in. “But I promise, it’s less interesting than you think. Just embarrassing.”</p><p>“Believe me, dancing on the tables during a party is <em> very </em>interesting,” he grinned, leaning forward with an eager, amused look. “Especially if it truly led to you leaving with more than one person.”</p><p>“Oh hush,” M’ajah quickly said, her cheeks burning. “I was…” Again, she sighed. “Very well. As Buscarron said, I had just joined this adventurer’s group and it looked like we were working very well together. We had finished a big job and had been paid very well and we came here to celebrate. Then someone found out it was my birthday, and things escalated.”</p><p>Eremia laughed. “Believe me, M’ajah, if I counted every party that escalated as an embarrassment, I wouldn’t stop feeling embarrassed ever again.”</p><p>She cringed slightly. “Well, how many people have seen you leaving such a party with two men on your arms after you’ve shamelessly made out with them both in a corner?”</p><p>“Oh, you’d be surprised,” he grinned, but she just gave him a small kick under the table and he laughed. “Alright, maybe not, but still, that’s not too bad.”</p><p>M’ajah sighed again. “Not at first maybe, especially since everyone was so drunk. I mean, I had just turned seventeen, I was very drunk and very horny, people make mistakes, right? But it turned hostile quickly when the group split from me a few weeks afterwards.”</p><p>Eremia’s smile vanished very suddenly and a look of realization came into his eyes. “Wait. It was your <em> seventeenth </em>birthday?!” he asked in disbelief.</p><p>M’ajah nodded. “Don’t tell Buscarron. I lied about my age a lot back then. He thought I had turned twenty.”</p><p>“What about the two you left with?” Eremia asked tensely.</p><p>She shrugged. “I don’t know. I think they suspected that I was younger than I said I was, but I never told them.” </p><p>“They were part of your group back then?” His eyes were dark, his earlier amusement gone.</p><p>“Yes. I thought myself lucky. Not only had I proven myself to the group, now I was sure I’d be a true part of it, you know?” She sighed and refilled her glass. “Well, it did not quite work out so well. I thought they actually cared for me, and I told them about a vision I had. Someone died and they blamed me, and what happened that night suddenly was no longer a night of fun but manipulation.” Eremia looked at her with pity, and M’ajah cringed. “See? I shouldn’t have told you. The night itself was embarrassing and what followed was no fun. I should have left it as something you can mock and be curious about.”</p><p>He looked a bit caught and reached across the table to touch her hand. M’ajah stilled at the touch, a warm shiver running through her.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” Eremia said quietly. “I shouldn’t have pushed you to talk about it. ‘Twas truly not my intention to bring up that kind of grief again.” He pulled his hand back again, and M’ajah felt a sliver of disappointment at the loss of his touch. “I think I know what happened when the group split from you. It was…”</p><p>“…part of your visions of my past?” she asked, giving him a small smile when he nodded. “Well, that relieves me of talking about that at least.”</p><p>Eremia huffed a laugh. When he spoke next, it was clear that he tried to lighten the mood again. “But truly, M’ajah, don’t be embarrassed about a night of drunk fun. Wait until Thancred starts to brag about some of the nights that went down in the Waking Sands. Or worse, Ul’dah. And yes, I was very much present for them.”</p><p>M’ajah grinned, grateful for his try to make her feel better. And she was only too happy to change the topic to something more light-hearted. “Oh?” she asked, giving him a deliberate wide-eyed look. “Tell me, how much do I have to get you to drink until you dance on the tables for me?”</p><p>His laugh was utterly delighted, and M’ajah’s eyes were bright as she watched him with a tingle in her stomach that had little to do with the wine.</p><p>“Believe me, you need more than half a bottle of wine for that,” Eremia laughed before he leaned forward with a teasing look. “Although you could of course always just ask nicely. I could throw in a song or two.”</p><p><em> Gods damn me, </em> M’ajah thought, her heart skipping a beat at his flirting and the way he looked at her. <em> I need to stop this. </em></p><p>And yet, she found herself unwilling to. It had been too long since she had felt this kind of connection to someone, this flutter of excitement and hint of arousal. The Scions she had spent the last weeks with had become friends, but their talks had never had this feeling of utter delight, warmth, and underlying tension. She wanted nothing but to give in to it, to just let herself be swept away by their flirts and see where it might lead.</p><p>And yet, she knew already where it would end.</p><p>With a ring on another woman’s finger. And a gunshot to his heart.</p><p>Not for the first time, she cursed her gift for taking away the lightness of possibilities. And herself for trying to ignore it, for she knew that it could lead to nowhere good. She should not have agreed on accompanying him, she should have first made sure that whatever spark she felt for him was dead for good. Instead, every talk, every smile, every moment of connection fanned it more and more. Already, it was a simmering heat inside her, ready to burst into flame. Already, a part of her was mourning him, crying and screaming at the unfairness of knowing she’d lose him before she had even gotten to know him.</p><p>She needed to stop this.</p><p>“Maybe I will one day,” she answered evasively.</p><p>Even though she tried to ease her words with a smile, she could see the confusion on Eremia’s face. </p><p>Thankfully, Buscarron saved her from having to explain herself by bringing the food and joining them for a while to catch up. The conversation turned light and easy, and when M’ajah excused herself early, pretending to be tired, Eremia did not try to stop or follow her.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Come talk to me on <a href="https://elveny.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> :D</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>They finished their mission in Gridania without any complications, and even though M’ajah found herself watching Eremia with more longing than should be there, there was no more of that flirting that held an unspoken offer. Eremia left to join Althea in Limsa not long after they returned to the Waking Sands, and M’ajah decided that she should be relieved about it. But it didn’t matter how much she tried to convince herself of it, she couldn’t deny the sadness at not being around him for quite some time when they said good-bye.</p><p>Thankfully, there was no shortage of work to keep her distracted - at least until they met again after their respective assignments, and he invited her along to the next mission with an easy smile that made it impossible for her to refuse. This time, though, they weren’t alone, and in the company of others, it was easier to assure herself that all there was between them was friendship. And nothing was as easy as being his friend. Talking to him, laughing with him felt like they had always known each other.</p><p>Over the course of the following months, M’ajah travelled and worked with both Eremia and the other Scions, fighting alongside them against Ifrit and other enemies. The Scions kept an eye on all of Eorzea, even negotiating with several beast tribes, and it didn’t take long until she felt more at home with them than she had ever felt with any other group. She did not share every mission with Eremia by far, and if she did, they were always in the company of others. Often enough, Althea was a part of their group to remind M’ajah of what would inevitably happen. Of why trying to be nothing more than his friend was the wise thing to do.</p><p>Still, there was no denying the underlying tension between them.</p><p>“We’re just friends,” became M'ajah's easiest and most hated lie through these months when they were on missions together or met again back in the Waking Sands.</p><p>Every time they met, it was as if they were right back at where they had left each other last time. And with every long talk, every flirt, every stolen glance, every laugh they shared, the pretense that the spark between them had not long become simmering heat that was ready to explode at a single touch grew thinner.</p><p>“Just friends, huh?” A’aba said when he and Arenvald came into the common room one morning to find M’ajah and Eremia exactly where they had left them the night before, still deeply lost in talk. Eremia just shrugged with a sidelong glance at M’ajah who pretended not to hear her friend while Arenvald chuckled.</p><p>It was not the first time that M'ajah was aware that all she had to do was cross that last invisible line, and the <em> What ifs </em> that seemed to hover over their every interaction would become possibilities.</p><p>Possibilities that she knew were null and void.</p><p>And so she held on to whatever she found that helped her to stop herself from falling more for him, from reacting to his warmth and his teasing even though she sensed his confusion. What made it worse was that she was not particularly good at keeping away from him. M’ajah would forget herself, getting lost in his company and the ease they had with each other. Then, it felt only too natural to flirt with Eremia or respond to his flirts - but inevitably,  she would catch herself and become distant. She could feel Eremia’s irritation about it, and every night, she swore to herself that she’d be more careful the following day. And every morning, his smile and warmth made her break that oath.</p><p>Still, they managed to maintain their growing friendship, and it was easy to assure herself that the fact that Eremia never tried to push for anything beyond light-hearted flirting proved that it was just her own heart she kept hurting.</p><p>It was at the celebration after a bigger fight sometime in autumn that she got an inkling that it might be different after all. They were drunk on both the victory and alcohol, their group using the relative safety of the Hawthorne Hut for a night of drinks and laughter before they would split up again the following day. Eremia seemed to never leave her side that night. It was closer to morning than evening when they found themselves in a small group around the fire, Eremia singing drunkenly to himself while the others listened in content and tired silence.</p><p>“I knew your voice was magic, Eremia,” M’ajah whispered dreamily when he was finished. She had nearly drifted off to sleep during his song, her head on his shoulder.</p><p>“Call me Mia,” he answered with a smile, his arm coming around her.</p><p>“Only if you call me Ajah,” she murmured happily, her eyes already fluttering shut.</p><p>“Deal.” It was the last thing she heard before she fell asleep in his arms.</p><p>When she woke the following day, she only vaguely remembered him bringing her to her tent, a soft caress of her hair, and a whispered, “I’m glad I found you.” And she found herself desperately wishing for that one vision she had of him leaning towards her to kiss her to become true.</p><p>If only she knew there was a future for them instead of what would actually happen.</p><p>She tried to prolong the time until she had to join the others outside for as long as possible, only to find the scraps of her resolve to keep away from Eremia utterly shattered the moment he beamed at her when he saw her.</p><p>“Papalymo wants us to stay in Gridania for the time being, he might have something he’ll need our help for. We’re to wait for his call,” he informed her and passed her the bread as she settled down.</p><p>“All of us?” she asked, trying to ignore the excited tingle in her stomach at his smile.</p><p>“Just the two of us. The others have already been called away to Limsa. Something is up with the kobolds apparently.”</p><p>She looked up in alarm. “Titan?”</p><p>He shrugged. “We don’t know yet. Saran and Adriene already left to meet with Cassia, Layanna, and Nayan in Limsa. I think Arenvald, Ayda, and Bia are monitoring the Amaljah. Althea has gone to meet Papalymo, Yda, and the Sylphs.”</p><p>M’ajah let out a breath. That was what she got for sleeping in. “Should we join her there?”</p><p>Eremia shook his head. “No, we’re supposed to keep an ear out in Gridania for anything unusual. I must say I’m not opposed to a warm bed for a change.”</p><p>There was just the hint of a teasing spark in his eye, but for once, M’ajah pretended not to notice it, just humming affirmatively. She knew that anything more, any answer that would make her think about him and a bed at the same time would make her blush in a way she would not be able to explain away.</p><p> </p><p>The first night they spent in Gridania was so warm that everyone in the city seemed reluctant to turn in for the night. It was already close to midnight, and still, the inn was full and the streets filled with people taking a stroll. At the Aetheryte, a group of musicians had started an impromptu concert, and many had taken their drinks and gathered outside to listen, sitting in the grass or on balconies.</p><p>“I had forgotten how lovely evenings in Gridania can be,” M’ajah said, looking up through the towering boughs of trees between which the stars shimmered. “Ul’dah with its lights is beautiful as well, but nothing quite compares to this.”</p><p>“Mmh, yes,” Eremia hummed in agreement.</p><p>They had found a spot on the ground a bit out of the way, idling the evening away. It was a nice change of pace; no need to be on permanent alert of their surroundings, no need to build a camp. Instead, a warm bed was waiting for them, and M’ajah looked forward to not being woken at dawn by the chill or too-loud birds.</p><p>“Back when I was still a girl, my mother would sometimes take me with her on her hunting trips,” M’ajah told him, a melancholic smile on her face. “She’d always find some secluded place high up where we would spend the night. This reminds me of those nights." She sighed, a smile on her face as she watched the stars. "I loved those trips. She taught me to shoot and told me stories upon stories at the fire in the night.”</p><p>“I’ve been wondering, why did you switch from the bow to the lance?” Eremia asked. He was lying on his back and propped up on his arms, giving her a curious look.</p><p>“I wouldn’t say I switched,” she shrugged. “I still love the bow. But when you’re mostly on your own in the wilderness, you need a weapon that does not have to first be strung before you can defend yourself.”</p><p>“I’m sorry,” he said quietly.</p><p>“Nothing to be sorry about. It was just a matter of necessity.” M’ajah gave him a smile. “Maybe I’ll go back to using it more now that I have found you.”</p><p>Eremia’s eyebrows shot up at her words, a mix of delight and surprise shimmering in his eyes, and M’ajah’s cheeks warmed as she realized what she had said.</p><p>“The Scions, I mean,” she quickly amended, but judging from the way his smile widened, he had noted her blushing. “You as in the Scions, so that I actually no longer need to…” She trailed off somewhat helplessly. <em> Gods, </em> she was rambling, and she knew it, and still she couldn’t stop. “I mean, actually it’s you who found me.”</p><p>Oh, Twelve, she only made it worse.</p><p>Eremia laughed softly, coming back into a seat. “Oh no,” he said warmly, that hint of a tease in his voice that seemed to hold a question and promise in one, “I would definitely say you have found me as well.”</p><p>Her eyes widened as he leaned a bit closer, tilting his head as if in a question, and her breath caught in her throat. Her whole body seemed to vibrate with the longing to be close to him, but he couldn’t mean this, could he? No, he was going to be with Althea, and surely there had to be some kind of feeling involved. With both of them being partners for a while already, it couldn’t just be…</p><p>Eremia touched her hand, and every thought dissipated for a too-long second. Each brush of his fingers over hers sent a tingle over her skin, and before she knew what she was doing, she turned her hand, returning the caress in a careful touch to his palm.</p><p>Her heart beat hard in her chest, and the way his whole face lit up at her touch sent a surge of warmth through her. He looked at her with such warmth and emotion that she got lost in his eyes, a dreamy, tentative smile on her lips, and for a moment, she thought she’d forget to breathe as he carefully reached for her. His fingertips touched her cheek, sending a shiver down her spine, and butterflies exploded through her stomach.</p><p>“We shouldn’t,” she whispered, but she did not draw away when he leaned closer, his eyes burning into hers.</p><p>“Why?” His voice was soft, and yet there was a roughness to it that sent heat straight to her core.</p><p>“Because…” M’ajah trailed off as she could feel his breath against her lips, and her eyes fluttered closed. <em> Remember what will happen, </em> she told herself, but her inner voice sounded weak and utterly unconvincing. His fingers trailed softly over her skin and curled in the hair in her nape, and her heart was racing even as she became utterly still underneath his soft touches. She <em> yearned </em> for him to close the last bit of distance between them, but Eremia seemed to wait for something. For her. For her to finish her sentence or to take the leap. As she looked at him, she found him watching her, his eyes half-closed and utterly mesmerized, and M’ajah thought she might never tire of this look.</p><p>It would be so easy to just be in the moment, to give in to the promise that seemed sizzle in the air between them, that she thought she could taste on her tongue even though he still hadn’t kissed her. All she had to do was to forget about the things she had seen.</p><p>The thought settled heavily on her shoulders, and the breath she took was shuddering as she drew back, away from him and out of his touch. </p><p>“I have to go,” she murmured miserably and got up hastily. “I’m sorry.” </p><p>“Ajah, wait!” she heard Eremia call after her as she hurried away, but she did not stop.</p><p>She quickly took the path down to the Carline Canopy where they had their rooms, hurrying past the few people who were still around. Nobody paid any attention to her, not even Mother Miounne who was laughing with another adventurer. M’ajah didn’t stop until she stood before her room, fumbling for the key and turning it in the lock.</p><p>Instead of opening it, though, she paused, her heart clenching. What was wrong with her? With a low groan, she leaned her forehead against the door, a treacherous burning in the corner of her eyes. She had been with the Scions for close to six months now, shouldn’t she have learned how to deal with this by now?</p><p>“Ajah.”</p><p>Eremia’s voice was soft behind her, and M’ajah took a deep breath before she turned to face him. He had stopped a few steps behind her, giving her a look she couldn’t quite interpret.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” he said, and she blinked in confusion. Why did he apologize? It was her who had been an ass. And not for the first time.</p><p>Quickly, she shook her head. “You don’t have to apologize for anything,” she murmured. </p><p>“Yes I do,” he insisted, unhappiness in his voice as he took another step towards her. For a moment, he raised his hand as if he wanted to reach for her, then he let it fall back down again. “I obviously misinterpreted-”</p><p>“You didn’t,” M’ajah interrupted him. Despite everything, she couldn’t let him think that any of this was his fault. This was on her, and her alone.</p><p>His eyes widened in surprise and he tilted his head questioningly, a glimmer of hope on his face that tore into her heart. “I didn’t?” he asked carefully.</p><p>She shook her head, opening her mouth to answer, but before she could, someone appeared behind Eremia in the hallway. Another guest, apparently just about to turn in as well. He gave them a sort of awkward nod as he went past, and M’ajah made a decision. It was long past time they had this conversation anyway, but not out here.</p><p>She opened the door to her room and motioned to Eremia to follow her inside. He gave her a curious look but did not object, walking in and stopping in the middle of the small room to turn and look at her.</p><p>M’ajah closed and locked the door behind her, leaning against it as she tried to find the right words.</p><p>“So…” Eremia started when she didn’t say anything for a tense moment. “I did not misinterpret. You are…”</p><p>“Interested?” she murmured when he trailed off. He just nodded, and she swallowed. She couldn’t remember when she had last been this nervous. Her whole body was tingling, the tip of her tail trembling, and she didn’t know whether she was cold or hot. But he deserved to know, he needed to know. “Yes.”</p><p>The word was so small, and yet it seemed to hold the weight of a whole world. The weight of a secret she had tried to keep hidden so deep inside that she had sometimes even managed to trick herself. But now, it was out in the open, her heart offered, and she couldn’t help but feel easier now that that weight had fallen off her shoulders. Especially when she saw the way his face lit up at her confession. It made the following words come all by themselves.</p><p>“I remember longing for you before you said more than two sentences to me,” she said softly. “In my vision, I felt that need to kiss you, to touch you, as my own. And at first, I didn’t know if it was just that, that memory of a future that might never happen. I had a memory of being in love with you before I even knew your name.” M’ajah gave him a somewhat helpless smile. “How could that be real?” She took a deep breath, her heart beating hard in her chest. “But then… I got to know you. And it became real. I wanted to kiss you ever since I heard you sing for the first time. Maybe even longer.”</p><p>Everything inside her longed to reach for him, to touch him, to give her quiet words some weight, some proof, but she held herself back even when he took a step closer, his eyes burning as he watched her.</p><p>“I thought it was just me,” she continued, the words coming more and more quickly now that she had started to talk. They had burned inside her for so long that she was unable to hold them back anymore. “We’re friends, after all, and you’re kind and open with all your friends. And funny and heartfelt… you even flirt with most of us in some way.”</p><p>He seemed a bit embarrassed by this assessment, his ears flicking. “I do?”</p><p>M’ajah let out a short laugh as she nodded. “Yes, you do. You love to tease people, and when you do it with that smile of yours and that wink…”</p><p>“Hmm,” he hummed thoughtfully, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. “I guess I do.”</p><p>M’ajah nodded again. “And you never tried to take it further, so I never knew if those moments… the moments when there seemed to be something more between us… if it was just me. My imagination. Wishful thinking.”</p><p>“It wasn’t,” Eremia murmured. Again, he took a step towards her and reached to touch her cheek, nearly as if he couldn’t stop himself. M’ajah closed her eyes, turning her head into the caress with a small sigh, giving in to the longing inside her for a precious second before she laid her hand over his and took it down. </p><p>“I didn’t want to fall for you,” M’ajah whispered, still holding on to his hand. “In fact, I was desperately trying not to.”</p><p>“Why?” There was a small frown on his face, but he did not draw away from her.</p><p>“Because I’m scared.” The words broke from her with more force than intended, and it was enough to make him take a step back. She didn’t know what was worse - the loss of his touch or the way he looked at her, and her throat closed. There was something pleading in her voice as she repeated more quietly, “Mia, I’m so scared.”</p><p>“Of me?”</p><p>He sounded so hurt that it nearly broke her heart, and she quickly shook her head. “No! No, never you. No, I’m scared of what will happen. Of the future.”</p><p>His sigh of relief was followed by a look of understanding. “You mean your visions,” he said softly.</p><p>“Yes,” she nodded, and the burning of tears was back in her eyes. “I know your future and… it’s too much! That’s why I pulled away so often. I wish I could just ignore it, but I don’t know how.” As she drew a breath, it sounded treacherously like a sob, and she quickly wiped a hand over her eyes. “I don’t want to lose you! You are my closest friend, you are my… you mean so much to me, and I have lost too much to lose you as well. But I know I will, and it breaks my heart even now.”</p><p>Eremia looked at her with so much emotion that M’ajah could no longer hold the tears back that started to run hot over her cheeks.</p><p>“I thought if I can just be your friend and nothing more, it will not hurt as much once you’ll inevitably be with someone else,” she whispered in a choked voice. “Once you’ll… once everything will happen.”</p><p>She did not see him move, but the next moment, she was in his arms, his hand in her hair as he held her close. She wrapped her arms around him, burying her sobs at his shoulder. She had tried so hard to push those dreaded visions and all the emotions that had come with them away that they had become a tangled knot somewhere deep inside. But as Eremia held her, whispering soothing words into her hair, it felt like all of them flowed out of her at once until there was nothing left but a tired sadness.</p><p>M’ajah had no idea how long they had stood there while she cried her heart out, but he didn’t let go of her for one moment. She let out a shuddering breath and wiped the last tears from her cheeks while he tightened his arms.</p><p>“Forgive me, Ajah,” Eremia said softly against her hair. “I did not understand how much those visions actually affect you.”</p><p>“I try not to let them,” she answered, taking one last breath of his scent before she carefully untangled herself. He seemed reluctant to let go of her but didn’t protest. “But it is harder when… when it means something.” She gave him a somewhat embarrassed smile and tugged slightly at the wet spot on his tunic where her tears had stained it. “I am sorry about that.”</p><p>Eremia chuckled. “I can always take it off,” he said easily, his grin turning teasing at her surprised blink.</p><p>M’ajah couldn’t help the small laugh at his renewed flirting, the heaviness lifting even more from her heart. His smile softened as he saw it, and his next words took her breath away.</p><p>“Can I please kiss you now?”</p><p>Her heart skipped a whole beat as she looked at him with wide eyes. “But…”</p><p>He smiled at her, reaching for her hand. “Ajah, I don’t know what will happen… or, no, I suppose I <em> do </em>know, you told me.” He pulled a face before he shook his head. “Let me try again. I have no intention of marrying anyone at the moment, let alone someone that is not you.” His thumb rubbed over her palm in a gesture that somehow was both soothing and suggestive, and M’ajah felt her cheeks flush. But Eremia wasn’t finished. “And since both visions are apparently fixed, I suppose I cannot die before the marriage thing has happened. Now, I don’t know what will be next year or in five years, but I know I don’t want it to keep me from…” His gaze intensified and M’ajah felt it like a physical touch, both his eyes and voice a caress as he added softly, “you.”</p><p>It was nearly too much, the wave of emotion going through her at his words, the tenderness in his voice, and the way he looked at her. “But… I’m a mess,” she stammered, in a try to do she didn’t even know what and very aware of how she had to look, with her eyes red-rimmed and her face swollen from crying.</p><p>Eremia actually laughed at that before he shook his head. “You are beautiful.” He pulled her a bit closer as he added in a teasing, conspiratorial tone, “Which is also why I think it’s more likely that it will be you who leaves me for some pretty prince, driving me to grieve in the arms of some other-”</p><p>He did not get to finish his sentence as M’ajah threw whatever last flimsy reservations she still harbored overboard. Without hesitation, she pushed herself against him, her lips equally demanding and soft as she kissed him.</p><p>Eremia immediately pulled her flush against him, a low growl in the back of his throat as he kissed her back, and the sound sent a shiver down her spine. M’ajah could no longer remember how often she had thought about kissing him during idle daydreams or lonely nights, how often she had tried to recall as many details as possible from her very first vision of him. But nothing could compare to the very real feeling of his lips opening beneath hers, the touch and taste of his tongue as he kissed her deeply. Her hand was in his hair, and she could feel his appreciative hum vibrate in his chest as she responded with eagerness to his every touch. She was torn between carefully and softly exploring every ilm of his mouth and pushing for more, <em> now. </em> Eremia seemed content to take his time, though, kissing her as if she was his whole world, in a tantalizingly slow and soft way. It made her whole body tingle, and before she had even managed to gather a coherent thought, she pressed herself against him, urging him backward. Eremia was only too happy to oblige her. After two or three steps, his legs met the bed, and he sat down without letting go of her. The next second, M’ajah was astride on his lap.</p><p>They were both breathless as they parted for a moment. His hands were resting on her hips, but his tail was curling around her leg, sending a whole-body shiver through her.</p><p>“Are you-” he started, his voice rough and his eyes dark with desire.</p><p>“Yes,” she breathed before he had even finished his question. She had never been more certain of anything. “Are you?”</p><p>The smile he gave her was full of heat, and she barely heard his murmured “Yes” before he was kissing her again.</p><p>His hands had slipped beneath her shirt, wandering up her back, chasing the shiver of heat that raced through her. She could feel the scrape of his fangs sharp against her lower lip as he nipped it, and it sent a spark of excitement and desire through her. A low moan blossomed in the back of her throat and she could feel Eremia smile against her lips before he started to kiss his way along her jaw. A low, eager sound fell from her lips as he trailed his mouth along her neck, teeth and tongue teasing over her heated skin, and M’ajah started to tug impatiently at his shirt. She wanted to feel him closer, his skin against hers.</p><p>“Didn’t you want to take this off?” she asked, her voice breathless as her fingers trailed over his chest.</p><p>“I definitely did,” he murmured, his lips coming back to hers again for a long, passionate kiss that got only interrupted by him helping her pull the tunic over his head, quickly followed by her own before they found each other again. He did not stop kissing her for a moment as his hands came back to her hips, holding her closer to him before he switched them around, laying her onto the bed.</p><p>His hand explored the curve of her waist, slowly but unerringly wandering up towards her breast. When he finally found it, teasing the taught peak through her breastband, she gasped softly against his lips. A streak of heat raced from where he touched her straight to her core, pooling between her legs.</p><p>His mouth was back on her neck, and the feeling of his fangs scraping over her pulse had her urge against him, her hands finding the laces on his trousers.</p><p>Just as she started to pull them open, a soft but insistent chiming made her blink in confusion, pulling her out of the haze of desire.</p><p>"What's that?" Eremia asked, his voice thick and rough as he paused as well.</p><p>"My linkpearl," M'ajah murmured, ears flicking once in annoyance. He raised one questioning eyebrow and she lifted her head to catch his lower lip with her teeth, giving it a slight tug. "I intend to ignore it," she added as she sank back with a promising smile. As she had thought, the chiming stopped again already.</p><p>"Good," he growled and kissed her again, demanding and intense. M'ajah was just about to forget everything around them again when she heard another chime. It was much fainter than before, and she took a second to understand that it was Eremia's linkpearl.</p><p>And this time, it did not stop.</p><p>With an annoyed groan, Eremia buried his nose in the juncture of her shoulder and neck before he took his hand off her breast.</p><p>M'ajah didn't quite know whether she was more frustrated or amused by the interruption, but as Eremia pushed himself onto one elbow with a glower she knew was not directed at her, she couldn't help a tiny chuckle. It was more than a little bit absurd. </p><p>"If they're this insistent…" he said apologetically, and she nodded with a resigned sigh, fingers trailing over his muscular arms. Eremia had taken his weight off her but she could still enjoy touching him. At least, this way she had a moment to appreciate him.</p><p>"Yes,” he said with remarkable restraint and politeness after he had tapped the linkpearl. “Papalymo! … well, it’s late. M’ajah is, uh…” He gave her a wicked smirk as he told Papalymo, “she’s in bed.”</p><p>M’ajah bit her lip to keep a chuckle in and quickly busied herself with distracting him while he spoke to Papalymo. She started to kiss his shoulder and neck, sending a notable tremble of excitement through him. Her hands wandered over his shoulders while she trailed her lips along his jaw, a low, nearly inaudible purr vibrating in her chest.</p><p>“I understand,” Eremia said and sucked in a sharp breath followed by a barely restrained growl as she found the soft skin on his neck with her teeth. M’ajah smiled against his neck, smoothing the bite over with her tongue. The way his voice seemed somewhat unsteady when he spoke again made her giddy - but what he said next made her pause and sink back onto the bed.</p><p>“What, now?” he asked, a frown on his face that smoothed into resigned annoyance. “Can’t it wait until…? Immediately? … very well.”</p><p>The disappointed look he gave her mirrored her own feelings only too well, and the heat that had simmered directly underneath her skin cooled so quickly that she actually shivered.</p><p>“Yes, I’ll wake her. See you in a few minutes.”</p><p>M’ajah let out a long sigh when Eremia ended the call. “So much for that,” she said softly.</p><p>“I am sorry,” he murmured, getting off her to lay down next to her on the bed. His tail brushed up her leg until she turned towards him and intertwined her own with it.</p><p>“‘Tis not your fault,” she told him and gave him a smile. “I guess we will have to… continue some other time.”</p><p>Eremia brought her hand to her face, caressing her cheek before it slid to her neck and pulled her in for another kiss. It was short and sweet, and M’ajah protested wordlessly as he parted again from her, trying to capture his lips for yet another. She more felt than saw his smile as he murmured between kisses peppered to his mouth, “I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”</p><p>It was hard to tear herself away from him, and it got worse when he kissed her one last time before he left her to get his pack from his own room. As she saw him turn away from her, a strange, surreal feeling sent a shudder down her back. It was neither premonition nor a vision, but more like something had fallen into place. As if the first stone had fallen that would start an avalanche. And M’ajah knew that whatever came next, she would not be able to stop it.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Smut ahead. Just saying. 😇</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Garleans? In the Twelveswood?”</p><p>Eremia frowned at Papalymo, but M’ajah did not miss the worried glance he gave Althea. The viera wore her usual grim expression, but there was a certain restlessness about her that M’ajah wasn’t used to seeing in her. </p><p>“Yes,” Papalymo said matter-of-factly. “Eremia, I need you to scout them out. I’ll give you coordinates, but I need movements, goals. Yda and I will go intercept the group we encountered earlier. Eremia, contact me the moment you found something out.” He turned to Thea. “Althea, take M’ajah and find the ones we saw splitting from the squad earlier. They should not be here and we need to know if they are just an advance party.”</p><p>Althea gave him a short nod and indicated to M’ajah to follow her, already turning from the group without wasting time. For a second, M’ajah’s eyes met Eremia’s, and he gave her a little smile that sent a warm shiver into her stomach. It took her some effort to draw her eyes away from him before she hurried to follow Althea.</p><p>It didn’t take long for them to find the Garleans. They monitored them for the rest of the night, but couldn’t find any sign that they were still waiting for backup. Papalymo instructed them to just watch for now, but when the following day was over and the soldiers made camp, M’ajah finally understood what they were doing.</p><p>She grabbed Thea’s arm. “They’re tracking<em> us. </em> Thea, they’re following the exact path we’ve taken on our last mission.”</p><p>Althea let out a long breath, a grim look in her eyes. “I feared as much,” she said darkly. There was a long, tense pause, then she added, “This is not the first time it has happened.”</p><p>M’ajah’s eyes widened. “What? What interest does Garlemald have in the Scions?”</p><p>Thea slowly shook her head, eyes fixed on the soldiers in the distance. “It’s not the Scions,” she said slowly. “It’s…” She broke off.</p><p>M’ajah gave her friend a worried look. Something was wrong, she could sense it, but she could also see that Althea had difficulties talking about it. What had happened? She racked her memory but couldn’t think of an incident that would warrant Thea’s unease. </p><p>But she didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. It had taken a while until they had become friends - Althea was someone who kept herself so thoroughly in check that she appeared stoic or even cold for most of the time. It had taken M’ajah some time to see through the act it was, to notice the moments of unease and frustration that lay beneath a lot of it. It also had helped to see her and Eremia together. He was one of the few people who had no problem making Thea smile and who didn’t let himself be deterred by her seeming aloofness. It was one of the reasons why M’ajah had never questioned her vision of a wedding between the two of them.</p><p>There had been one memorable night where M’ajah and Althea had gotten to talk for hours and hours and realized that there was more common ground between them than either of them had assumed. Thea had been the first person M’ajah had met who was as hesitant about their gift of the Echo as she was, and who struggled as much with the responsibility it brought. Althea was also the first person to tell her that she was glad that M’ajah could<em> not </em>look into her past but still didn’t try to press her for any future details. ‘I do not care about my future,’ she had said. ‘I do not have anything I'm that invested in anyway. As long as I do not have to go back to my past, I am good.’ Ever since that night, there had been an understanding between them that was unlike the one she shared with anyone else.</p><p>M’ajah gave Thea’s arm a comforting squeeze, wordlessly signaling her that she wouldn’t press for an answer, and followed her gaze towards the camp of the Garlean soldiers.</p><p>“We should tell Papalymo. So far, they haven’t done anything apart from trespassing, so I don’t think we have grounds to attack them, but should they venture towards any settlements or become violent, they need to know,” she said. “Also-”</p><p>The word broke in a gasp as a familiar, sharp pain shot through her head, and just the years of practice not to let anyone see that she had a vision prevented her from violently flinching.</p><p>
  <em> A destroyed mansion, huge and dark. From the looks of it, parts have burned down, others seem to have fallen in over the course of time. Single snowflakes danced in the air, and there was a sharp crispness all around them that spoke of bitter cold. A troop of soldiers stood before them, their black uniforms with blood-red highlights marking them as Garleans. A tall figure in chains was violently pushed forward until she fell to her knees onto the frosty ground. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> “Welcome home, Althea pyr Flavius,” the Commander spat at her, raising a crop to hit her across the shoulders. Judging from the angry, bloody streaks across Althea’s back, it wasn’t the first time. Then he threw the crop aside and raised his gunblade, pointing it directly at her head. “Now you’ll pay for your crimes.” With that, he pulled the trigger. </em>
</p><p>The vision was over as quickly as it had come, but it took M’ajah a second to reel herself back into reality, still caught in the horror, pain, the explosion of flaming shock that was followed by abrupt darkness. </p><p>“M’ajah?” Althea looked at her, eyebrows drawn together.</p><p>M’ajah stared at her. <em> Althea pyr Flavius. </em> A Garlean name.</p><p>Her friend was from Garlemald.</p><p>For a horrible long second, she was deadly afraid, her thoughts whirling between the horror of seeing Thea’s death and the implication of her being Garlean. No, no, this couldn’t be. Thea was no spy. She shook her head, forcing her instinctive reaction back down again. They were the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, every other person had the Echo. If Thea were not true to them, someone would have found out long ago. People had to know that she was Garlean which also meant that they knew about her reason for leaving Garlemald. And if her vision proved anything, then that Althea had just as much reason to fear Garlemald as the rest of them did - probably even more so. There was some personal history that made her a person of special interest for them.</p><p>This also explained why Thea was so relieved that M’ajah couldn’t see into her past. It meant that she was unprejudiced, unburdened by knowledge that Althea wasn’t ready to give and that was potentially dangerous. </p><p>But it was more than that. It explained the Garleans’ presence in Gridania, their tracking them.</p><p>“They’re after you,” she breathed.</p><p>For a split second, Thea’s eyes widened, something like resignation and bitterness flashing over her features, then her whole face closed.</p><p>“You know,” she stated.</p><p>M’ajah nodded a bit unhappily. “You’re Garlean,” she said quietly. “Althea pyr Flavius.”</p><p>Althea stiffened at the name. “I thought you could not see the past,” she said.</p><p>M’ajah shook her head. “I can’t,” she hurried to explain. “But I had a vision of a possible future where they caught you and brought you back to Garlemald in chains. I don’t know what they want you for, but there won’t be a trial.” She did not have to fake the horror and pain in her voice as she added, “Thea, if they catch you, they’ll kill you.”</p><p>There was a long, heavy pause in which Althea just looked at her. Then, something in her face softened and M’ajah let out a relieved breath.</p><p>“Tell me what you have seen,” Thea said. “You say ‘if’, so it’s not fixed, is it?”</p><p>M’ajah shook her head. “No, it’s not. We can still prevent it. We just need to figure out how.” In quick words, she told her friend what she had seen. “We cannot let them get away with barging into Eorzean territory for hunting you,” she said in the end. “We need to tell the God’s Quiver or the Twin Adder, they won’t stand for this!”</p><p>Althea seemed deep in thought, but at that, she just scoffed and shook her head. “They will not do anything,” she said bitterly. “Because I’m not Eorzean. They see it as an internal Garlean affair and will not interfere for fear of retaliation. Believe me, we tried. Even Minfilia tried to interfere, but they won't even grant me asylum.”</p><p>M’ajah shook her head, then her eyes widened. “That was the argument I overheard in the Solar before we left, wasn’t it? I couldn’t make out what it was about, but it sounded very heated.”</p><p>Althea nodded. “It was. I’m not blaming Minfilia, I know she is doing her best. But we have been trying to get somewhere ever since I joined the Scions and all we get is resistance.” The frustration on her friend’s face was clear. “I… used to serve in the Garlean army,” she said after another moment’s pause. “But if it were only the desertion they wanted me for, they probably would not go that far. But my mother was a high-ranking military official serving at the side of the White Raven when she went mad. She died a long time ago, but people still want to see someone on trial for her crimes. And I am the only living relative left.”</p><p>“So they go after you,” M’ajah said slowly.</p><p>Thea nodded again. “Yes. Which is also why your vision does not quite make sense. Why would they just shoot me when they could make a spectacle out of my trial and execution?” The bitterness was back in her voice.</p><p>“I don’t know,” M’ajah confessed quietly. “Maybe someone who has a personal grudge?” Then she shook her head. “But in the end, it also doesn’t matter, because we’ll make sure it won’t ever come to pass!” Her eyes were full of resolve and hardness as she looked towards the Garlean camp and then back to Thea. “We won’t let them take you, promise!”</p><p>A tiny smile came onto Althea’s face as she looked at M’ajah. “How?” she just asked. “As long as the city-states do not grant me asylum or citizenship, they won’t interfere, and it is only a matter of time until one of the troops succeeds to catch me.”</p><p>M’ajah stubbornly shook her head. “There has to be another way to get you…”</p><p>Suddenly, she trailed off, her eyes widening and her jaw falling slack as she realized what would happen. Here it was, the next stone towards the avalanche, and the next. There<em> was </em>another way. Her heart started to beat nearly painfully hard, and for a second, she closed her eyes against the uproar of emotion.</p><p>Then she said, “We need to go back and talk to the others. I know what we have to do.”</p><p> </p><p>They met the others just outside the Sylph’s settlement. While Althea gave Papalymo and Yda an update about what they had found, M’ajah immediately pulled Eremia a few steps aside.</p><p>A warm smile was in the corner of his lips as he let himself be dragged along, one eyebrow raised suggestively at her urgency.</p><p>“I missed you too,” he said with a hint of amusement.</p><p>“You’re going to marry Althea,” M’ajah blurted out.</p><p>Eremia had raised his hand to touch her cheek, but at her words, he froze, blinking in confusion. “What?”</p><p>She nodded, her eyes burning as she looked up at him. “It’s always been she in my vision of your wedding,” she said softly but with an underlying urgency. “You’re going to marry her.”</p><p>His brow was still furrowed in confusion as he looked from M’ajah to Althea and back. “Why are you telling me this?” he asked.</p><p>M’ajah bit her lip for a second. “Because you need to do it now. Garlemald is after her, and I know what they’ll do to her if they catch her, I saw it.”</p><p>“Another vision,” Eremia stated quietly.</p><p>She nodded. “They’d kill her. But marrying you will get her citizenship.”</p><p>He let out a long breath, his face brightening in realization. “Twelve be damned,” he mumbled, “of course! Then the city-states will have every reason to interfere without putting themselves in the middle. That’s brilliant!”</p><p>He turned towards where Thea was talking to Papalymo and Yda. “Thea!” he called out, a broad grin on his face. “Want to marry me?”</p><hr/><p>In the following days, M’ajah tried her best to pretend that she didn’t notice the way Eremia distanced himself from her. That where he had given her little smiles or winks whenever their eyes met, there was now a distinct lack of warmth, a sort of pain before one of them looked away again. It was only now when he no longer had that spark of flirting in his eye, that ease of bearing himself that she noticed just how close they had become over the months.</p><p>She knew there was no romantic love between him and Althea, but as they put on a show for the public, pretending to have a relationship that would soon culminate in a wedding big enough to fool even the Garlean spies that were sure to attend, it was hard to swallow the sting of disappointment that came with it.</p><p>She knew she was being stupid. The wedding had been <em> her </em> idea, after all. Both Althea and Eremia had been on board nearly immediately, especially since they were both very comfortable with each other. After the first surprise, the inevitable laughter, amusement, and raunchy remarks followed as they planned how to go about it all. The first hesitation had come when Papalymo had stated that they would have to make a good show of it. Nobody could doubt their attachment, nobody could have a reason to intercept or fight the legality of the marriage. That meant that they would have to stay close and obviously in love from now on and for quite some time after the wedding as well. It had caused Eremia to fall quiet for a long moment as he looked at M’ajah. She held his gaze with a burning in her heart and a sad smile. She had known what it meant.</p><p>M’ajah had left them to the discussion pretty soon, knowing that there were things they needed to clear and talk about that needed to stay between them. The things that everyone else saw in full effect the moment they were not among themselves; the obvious touches, kisses brushed against a cheek or lips, the lingering glances, and happy smiles. And, Twelve, they put on a good show of being in love. A show that included both of them being careful not to spend too much time with others, not to be overly affectionate with others.</p><p>They had decided that it would be prudent to spend some time in Gridania, making sure the public got a good look at them before they made the obligatory journey to the shrines of the Twelve across the realm that would end at the Sanctum and with the ceremony of Eternal Bonding.</p><p>She knew it was an act. Of course she knew it was an act. And still, she often found it hard to watch, hard to remind herself of it.</p><p>It wasn’t only her, though. Over the course of the last few days, she had met Eremia’s eyes more than once, and the smile on his lips had wavered every time before he caught himself and turned back to Thea. Once, he had found her alone in the hallway of the Carline Canopy, but before he could say more than two words, someone had interrupted them, and they had gone their separate ways.</p><p>It was enough to make her tense with frustration. They hadn’t had a single moment alone after Papalymo had interrupted them that night, no chance to talk about what had happened. Or, Twelve forbid, continue what they had started. And now that Eremia had to play the happy fiancé, everything that had seemed possible and within reach was again far away. But for once, M’ajah was unwilling to leave it at that, was unwilling to be content with glimpses of something that might never happen.</p><p>And if they couldn’t talk in private, they would find other means. The next meal, she slipped him a note.</p><p>
  <em> Are you angry at me for suggesting it? You barely seem to look at me. </em>
</p><p>His answer got passed to her on the way to the marketplace.</p><p>
  <em> How could I be angry at you for trying to save a friend? ‘Tis a matter of self-preservation, the not looking. I don’t know how I would be able to stop looking once I started. </em>
</p><p>She had to pause for a moment once she read it, pressing it against her heart. Then she scribbled an answer on the back of it, innocently tucking it into his hand as she pretended to look at some wares next to him.</p><p>
  <em> I wish we’d had more time. Or none at all… it might have made this easier. </em>
</p><p>She didn’t have to wait for long. Another stall, another note.</p><p>
  <em> Do you regret what happened? </em>
</p><p>When she looked up from the piece of paper, she found Eremia looking directly at her. He wasn’t smiling; rather, he seemed tense. M’ajah let out a long breath, her heart clenching at the burning in his eyes. Holding his gaze, she shook her head once. The change in him was immediate, relief flickering over his face as his smile came back and the tension bled from his shoulders. He turned towards Thea the next second and raised their intertwined hands to his lips to place a kiss onto them, and M’ajah quickly turned back to the jewelry she had been looking at. Still, she nearly felt like she could feel the kiss on her own hand, and a warm tingle went through her.</p><p>It took her until dinner until she was able to give him her answer.</p><p>
  <em> If I could turn back time, I would, just to kiss you again for the first time. I only regret running from you in the first place. If I hadn’t, we’d have had more time… then again, we might not have made it into my room. </em>
</p><p>M’ajah had no idea how he managed it without her or anyone noticing he read or wrote something, but when they finished the food and continued to drinks, she found another note slipped to her.</p><p>
  <em> So you’re saying you wouldn’t have minded a potential audience? Tell me more. </em>
</p><p>She could nearly feel his smugness even through the paper and had to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling too broadly as she scribbled her answer down in an unobserved moment.</p><p>
  <em> There are lots of dark corners between Gridania’s trees and a lot of thrill in trying to be quiet… but then again, I am assuming you wouldn’t have been the perfect gentleman and stopped… me. Would you have? </em>
</p><p>It was the weirdest situation, sitting among their friends, laughing and drinking, making toasts to the happy couple while she waited giddily for an answer.</p><p>
  <em> An excellent question. Considering the tendency you have to make me forget everything around me, I somehow doubt we’d even have made it into a dark corner. But we might need to test that theory in practice one day. </em>
</p><p>M’ajah’s eyes were bright and it took all her self-restraint not to look at Eremia. She was certain she wouldn't have been able to keep anyone from noticing her feelings if she did.</p><p>
  <em> Careful, or I might be tempted to take you up on that. Remember, you’re supposed to be madly in love with Thea. You don’t want to give people ideas by seducing me in public. </em>
</p><p>She barely had to wait five minutes until he passed her another note beneath the table. But when she opened it, she found it was her own, except that most of the words were blacked out. What remained was:</p><p>-- <em> I might be --- madly in love with - You -- </em></p><p>M’ajah’s breath caught in her throat, and she was certain that for a moment, everything around her just <em> stopped </em>. That night when they had kissed, it had been implied, and once or twice, she had even thought one of them had outright said it. But in the end, it had remained unspoken. Until now.</p><p>Her heart was beating loud and heavy in her chest as she stared at the words, the rush of emotions running through her nearly unbearable in its intensity. She could feel the heat in her cheeks that was a clear sign of the happiness inside her, the overwhelming longing that mixed with the dreadful knowledge that they couldn’t act on their feelings. She didn’t dare look up, but she was still sure that she was anything but inconspicuous right now for anyone watching her. She didn’t care, and yet, there was a tremor of nervousness inside her as she took her pen and made a tiny adjustment on the paper before she closed it in her fist. It was a torturous long time until she was able to pass it back to him.</p><p>-- <em> I m- --- madly in love with - You -- </em></p><p>She kept her hands busy afterwards without daring to look at him, refilling her glass and emptying it immediately, her heart still racing, full of that strange mix of nervousness and happiness. He wasn’t just <em> interested, </em> he had feelings for her! There was a perpetual smile on her lips, and she just hoped that the flush on her cheeks would be explained away with the drinks. </p><p>“Hey, what are you reading?”</p><p>Yda’s curious question made M’ajah finally look up again, and she saw Eremia still stare at the note she had passed him, his eyes wide. The question abruptly pulled him out of it, and he quickly folded the little paper away and tucked it into a pocket with a wide grin. A short look met M’ajah’s, and her heart skipped a beat at the brightness of his eyes before he concentrated on their friend.</p><p>“Now, don’t be nosy, Yda,” he chided her.</p><p>She put out her lower lip. “Aww, come on, tell me, you looked absolutely smitten!”</p><p>He leaned forward with a grin after giving Althea, who watched him in amusement, a wink. “Alright, come closer.” He beckoned Yda with a finger until she leaned half across the table. Then he whispered loud enough for everyone to hear, “It’s a secret!”</p><p>Among the general laughter around the table, Yda protested, but Eremia just laughed. “Listen, I’m going to marry soon, I’m bound to have some secrets, don’t I?”</p><p>Quickly, M’ajah hid her face behind yet another drink as something of her happy giddiness evaporated again when she was reminded that no matter what their respective feelings were, they would not be able to act on them any time soon. Not openly at least.</p><p>She made sure to include herself in the friendly and teasing banter following afterwards, but after another half-hour, she excused herself to go to bed. To her surprise, Althea tugged at Eremia’s arm, giving him a sweet smile.</p><p>“I am tired too, can we go to bed as well?”</p><p>His ears flicked in surprise, but after a fleeting glance at M’ajah, he immediately agreed. Together, they went up the stairs to the private rooms, and as soon as they were out of earshot of the crowded room, Thea came to the point.</p><p>“You need to either become better actors or stop,” she said in a low, serious voice. “You are not as inconspicuous as you think you are.”</p><p>“I’m sorry,” M’ajah murmured, a blush on her face and a sinking feeling in her stomach. “I didn’t mean to…”</p><p>“I know,” Althea interrupted her. “I’m not trying to… place blame. But please. If I notice it, others can too. This is supposed to work, isn’t it?”</p><p>She paused in front of the room she and Eremia shared and gave them a meaningful and a bit exasperated look as she nudged Eremia. “Just go and get it out of your system.” Then she went inside and closed the door.</p><p>For a moment, silence lay heavy between them, and M’ajah bit her lip in embarrassment as she looked at Eremia. Somehow, the interaction had taken the joy that had danced in her eyes during their little written exchanges. Eremia seemed equally hesitant all of a sudden, but he caught himself as he met her eyes.</p><p>With a smile, he reached to touch her hand and nodded in the direction of her room. “Let’s go talk,” he suggested softly, “before someone interrupts again.”</p><p>She found herself unable to answer and just nodded, and a minute later, she closed the door behind herself while Eremia walked over to the bed before he turned around. It reminded her strangely of the situation a week or two ago, where they had started the exact same way and had ended up getting interrupted by their linkpearls.</p><p>M’ajah let out a breath and took her linkpearl out, turning it off as she put it aside. Eremia chuckled as he saw it and followed suit. When he looked back at her, she took a step towards him with a helpless gesture.</p><p>“Mia, I don’t know how to do this,” she said. “I don’t… Thea is right, we cannot continue like this, but I…” She trailed off unhappily.</p><p>Eremia took a quick step towards her, taking her hand. “Forget tomorrow for now,” he said softly, taking out the note. “You truly mean it?”</p><p>There was such a vulnerability in his voice that M’ajah’s heart clenched and she closed her fingers tightly around his. “Of course I do.” Tilting her head slightly, she asked, “Don’t you?”</p><p>Instead of an answer, a soft sound that was somewhere between a sigh and a growl left him, and without hesitation, he pulled her close and kissed her.</p><p>It felt different than their first kiss, somehow, rawer and softer at the same time. Where she hadn’t known how to hold back that first time, M’ajah found herself utterly entranced. He kissed her so softly that she nearly felt like she was dreaming, and yet she knew it was real. She could feel him all around her, his arms holding her close, his tail intertwining with hers, the soft pressure of his lips upon hers. It coaxed a low sigh from her, blossoming deep in her throat, and Eremia took the chance to deepen the kiss. His tongue touched hers nearly reverently, tenderly, and she thought she might burn up from the heat that started to crawl up her spine at his touches. She felt like she might continue like this forever, caught in the softness of his hold, in the slow burning of desire that radiated between them. Eremia seemed content to just kiss her, taking his sweet time exploring her mouth, his fangs scraping over her lower lip as he tugged at it. M’ajah’s knees grew weak as he seemed to unfurl all her senses, the emotion that curled in her belly rising to her chest and making her heart race. His hands were holding her as she sank into him, but when she pushed herself closer, trying to get <em>more </em>as her fingers curled into his hair, she could feel the smile on his lips.</p><p>“Impatient,” he murmured teasingly against her mouth, and M’ajah caught his lip with her teeth.</p><p>“Who knows when I get this chance again,” she growled, flashing him a heated look as she tugged at his shirt and pushed her hands beneath.</p><p>“Good point,” he answered, his voice rough, then his mouth was back on hers. His hands roamed over her back and further down as he kissed her with passion, igniting the fire inside her with every touch. A low moan fell from her lips as he cupped her ass, lifting her against him while he placed kisses along her jaw and down her neck.</p><p>M’ajah responded in kind, letting her fingers trail over his skin beneath his tunic, and he sucked in a sharp breath, allowing her to pull it over his head. She kissed every ilm of exposed skin, relishing in the breathless low sounds in his throat as she let her tongue flick over his nipples, teeth teasing a deep groan from him before she made her way back up to his mouth while her hands ventured deeper to open his belt.</p><p>Eremia kissed her without restraint, his own hands not idle. Her belt fell down before he pulled at the laces that held the short dress she wore above her leggings, and it did not take long until it fell open and slid down her arms. Impatiently, she took a half step back and shrugged out of it, pushing it down over her hips together with her pants, kicking her shoes off. Then, she reached behind her and unhooked her breastband, letting it fall down as well.</p><p>Eremia watched her with burning intensity, his eyes wandering down her naked form, and M’ajah paused for a second, a sudden burst of shyness making her hesitant. She knew she tended to let herself be swapped away by these situations, acting before she thought. A part of it had always been the fear of being dismissed and rejected if she didn’t play along, and the less she thought about what was happening, the less she doubted her own willingness to participate.</p><p>But with Eremia, she knew his affection wasn’t conditional or dependent on how much she pleased him. She knew she could trust him; she <em> loved </em> him. And even more importantly in this moment, she wanted him.</p><p>Still, there was a quiver to her voice as she asked softly, “Would you have me?”</p><p>“Ajah…” he breathed, closing the small distance between them and taking her face in his hands. He kissed her long and sweetly until she was utterly breathless, her whole body tingling with desire for his touch. When he pulled back, there was a gleam in his eyes and a playful smile on his lips. With a smooth movement, he pulled his trousers down and threw them aside.</p><p>M’ajah’s breath caught in her throat at the sight of him as he stood before her, the thick and hard proof of his desire sending a streak of heat into her core. Unconsciously, she licked her lips, only noticing it at the way his eyes fell to her mouth and darkened with lust.</p><p>“Not unless you would have me as well,” he answered her question with a tilt of his head and a nearly boyish grin.</p><p>His playfulness was infectious, and she chuckled, her hesitation evaporating into nothing. Eremia held out his hand to her, and the next moment, she was back in his arms, and nothing mattered anymore but their touches and kisses. His fingers and lips trailed heat onto her skin as he turned them around and nudged her down onto the bed, bracing himself on an elbow as he bent over her. He gasped his pleasure against her neck as she trailed her fingers down his belly and firmly closed them around his cock, his fangs scraping over her pulse and sending a wave of lust through her. As she started to slowly, deliberately move her hand up and down, she found him looking at her with eyes dark and hooded with lust, his lips slightly parted, and she could feel his tail curling around her ankle. M’ajah gave him a sensual smile before she pulled him back into another kiss, drinking the moan from his lips as she rubbed her thumb through the wetness at the tip of his cock. His breath got ragged as she dragged her hand along his length in a slow, steady rhythm, relishing each twitch of ears or muscle, each sound of lust falling from his lips.</p><p>She was so focused on touching him, on pleasuring him, that it took her a moment to realize the path his hand was taking down her body. He found her breasts, teasing her nipples until they were hard beneath his caresses and she found his lips in a desperate kiss, pure need pooling between her thighs as he let his caresses trail further down, exploring every rise and fall of her. Her head fell back with a sharp gasp as his hand sank between her legs to find her already slick with want, and Eremia used the chance to sink his mouth onto her neck again, fangs scraping over her pulse. She had always known his fingers to be nimble, but as he found the bundle of nerves and started to stroke her, she found that she had had no idea of just <em> how </em> skilled he was.</p><p>Soon, she was trembling underneath his touches, heat breaking out all over her body, and the whisper of his name was chased by a whimper. Eremia claimed her mouth again with a hunger that matched her own, and the moan they shared was unrestrained. She arched into his touch, her own hand quickening its pace until he broke from her kiss with a deep groan, his fingers that had pleasured her just a second ago closing around her wrist to keep her from going.</p><p>M’ajah gave him a somewhat smug grin as she let go of him, but it couldn’t hide the flush all over her body and the quick rise and fall of her breath.</p><p>“Impatient,” Eremia murmured again, but there was a growl beneath the teasing in his voice and a flick of his ears that betrayed his own unwillingness to draw this out any longer.</p><p>“And if so?” she asked with faked innocence, her tail brushing along his thigh as she opened her legs a bit further for him. Her desire was burning hot inside her and the look in his eyes sent a shiver down her spine.</p><p>“Well, then I shall be happy to indulge you,” he said with a promising smile and leaned in to kiss her deeply. She pulled him closer, wrapping her legs around his hips with an eager whimper as she felt the tip of his cock breach her opening, and abruptly, her breath became lodged in her throat. Her head fell back, her fingers curling upon the muscles of his back as he pushed himself slowly into her wet heat without pulling back once until he was fully sheathed inside.</p><p>She’d have thought that with all the tension between them, it would be all passion and urgency once they finally were with each other, but instead, Eremia held utterly still as he was buried to the hilt, his breath shuddering against her lips. It was a near maddening experience; the feeling of him deep inside her without moving, and her desire was tightly coiled low in her belly, radiating from the point where they were joined. M’ajah could feel the heat of his gaze from half-lidded eyes like a touch as she tried to urge him on, and a teasing smile curled his lips.</p><p>“Mia, <em> please,” </em>she moaned.</p><p>Her voice broke on the words as he drew nearly completely out of her before he rocked back into her. He moved with slow, deliberate thrusts, long, languish rolls of his hips, and she met him stroke for deep stroke. Her hands roamed over his back to cup his muscular ass, her mouth sampling the taste of his desire on his skin as she licked and nibbled from his shoulders to his jaw. His fingers teased her hard, pebbled nipples until she twitched under his ministrations and her low moans became full-throated. As much as she wanted to take this slow, to draw this out as long as possible, the effect he had on her was undeniable, and soon, she rocked her hips faster against him, her lust coiling more and more tightly inside her.</p><p>There was a slight shift as Eremia drew his knees underneath him and drove into her without restraint, and M’ajah’s whole body grew taught as she met his fast, relentless thrusts. Her fingers clawed into his skin, coaxing a deep growl from him and the next moment, she felt a sharp if short-lived pain as he sank his fangs into the curve of her neck hard enough to leave a mark. The feeling raced all over her skin and into her core, pushing her over the edge. Just as she started to tremble and quiver around him, he took possession of her mouth again, drinking every sound of pleasure from her tongue as she unraveled in his arms. She was still reeling from the sensations running through her as his thrusts became erratic and wild and soon after, he followed her, spilling himself deep inside her.</p><p>When M’ajah found herself able to think again, she was wrapped around him, legs still hooked around his hips, her arms slung around his shoulders, one hand buried in his hair. She didn’t know when it had happened, but their tails were intertwined, his forehead resting against hers. He had sunk down on her, arms still trembling, and for a long moment, she just held him, a soft, content purr vibrating in her chest. A shiver ran over her sweat-dampened skin as the heat inside her slowly subsided, and Eremia blinked as he sensed it.</p><p>The look that met her still half-closed eyes sent yet another shiver over her that had nothing to do with the chill, and he smiled at her before he kissed her again, then freed her from his weight and pulled her with him as he laid down next to her. As she settled into his arm beneath the blanket, only the sound of their breath between them, she took a long time just to look at him, fingers trailing feather-light alongside his jaw and down his torso. The flush lay still upon his copper skin, strands of damp hair clinging to his neck and forehead, and she could see marks she couldn’t remember leaving. She found him utterly beautiful. He hadn’t let go of her for even a moment, and as she brushed the tip of her nose alongside the curve of his neck to his hairline, leaving kisses and wordless caresses along her way, a feeling washed in such intensity and clarity through her that made her heart stumble for a second.</p><p>He was more than an infatuation, more even than someone she had fallen for.</p><p>He was her <em> home. </em></p><p>And she would have to leave him.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>... this means I have to write the next chapter now, doesn't it 👀</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The darkness of the night had started to turn into that greyish blue that heralded the morning when M’ajah trailed her fingers carefully over Eremia’s cheek. He was sleeping, his face soft and peaceful, and her heart felt so full of emotions it threatened to burst as she watched him. She had brushed his silver hair back from his face, noting how his dark lashes rested against his cheeks, how his tattoos sharpened his features. His lips were slightly opened, and M’ajah had to resist the urge to brush her thumb over them, her stomach tingling as she remembered the way he had kissed her earlier. His arm and tail were still slung around her, one leg hooked over hers, searching her proximity even in sleep, and she could feel his breath against her skin, slow and steady. She was tired to the bone, and yet, she refused to sleep. She wanted to savor every second with him for as long as the shadows around them lasted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inching a bit closer into his embrace, she took a deep breath to commit his scent to memory, the warmth of his body against hers. Eremia mumbled something indecipherable in his sleep and pulled her closer with heart-warming implicitness, burying his nose in her hair for a second before he stilled again. M’ajah smiled, settling into his embrace with a content sigh. She could spend hours like this, she thought, days even. How much she would love to just forget about everything else, to just focus on him, his touches, his laughter, to let herself be swept away by his roguish teasing with naught a care in the world but him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A part of her still couldn’t quite believe that he returned her feelings, was sure she’d wake every moment to find him truly in love with Althea, and herself just one of his many friends. But he had not only written it, he had told her with his tongue and hands, had burned his feelings onto her skin and into her heart, all devotion and fierceness at the same time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah couldn’t remember ever having been touched with such reverence and tenderness. Her past experiences had been born of drunkenness and need, often hasty and rarely skilled. Few of the people she had been with had been focused on more than their own release, and none had ever stayed afterwards. Yet here she was, in the arms of the person who had told her of his love, who had given her pleasure just as much as she had offered him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia grunted in his sleep and tightened his arms around her, his tail curling firmly around her leg, and she let her hand wander from his face down his neck to his chest, tracing a mark she had left sometime earlier. At the memory, a warm shiver ran down her back and she nuzzled her nose into the crook of his neck with a smile. She could still feel a few sore spots herself where he had bitten her, one at the inside of her thigh, but she didn’t mind them in the least. On the contrary, she would treasure them for as long as she felt them since he wouldn’t be able to leave new ones once…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>… once she had left.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The thought made her snuggle closer to him, suddenly very conscious of the way the light had started to trespass into her room through the windows, tinting Eremia’s skin a soft gold. She stilled against him, listening to his calm breathing and heartbeat, her fingers drawing lazy circles on his body. Her contentment slowly gave way to a bittersweet sadness as she realized their time together would come to an end only too soon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still not tired?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia’s voice was low and heavy with sleepiness, but his eyes were clear when she looked up to meet them. He smiled at her before he pressed a kiss to her lips. “Don’t tell me I’m losing my touch,” he murmured against her mouth, his hand wandering down her back to grab her ass.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah chuckled, her eyes shining. “If that was you losing your touch, I’m not sure I’d be able to withstand your actual touch,” she teased.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laughter rumbled in his chest, fangs flashing as he murmured, “Mmh, was that a challenge? I like challenges.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The happy tingle in her stomach exploded through her whole body at his words, her breath catching at the promise in his voice. Eremia noticed her reaction, and his smile widened. The next second, M’ajah found herself straddling him as he turned onto his back while pulling her with him, his hands firmly settled on her hips.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah let out a surprised laugh as she braced herself with both hands next to his face and he caught her mouth with his, kissing her deeply while his hands started to wander. For a long, happy moment, she let herself be swept away by it, by his touches and kisses and the feeling of him hardening underneath her. By the time his lips found her neck, she was breathless and urging into his touch even though she was very aware of the rising sun.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Just once more,</span>
  </em>
  <span> she thought, </span>
  <em>
    <span>once more.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Before long, she could no longer tell where she ended and he began as he rocked into her, coaxing more and more pleading sounds from her. Eremia took his time, his touches and movements languid and slow, and she completely lost herself in him as she unraveled in his arms. He took possession of her lips again as she nearly screamed her pleasure, drinking her every sound as his thrusts became more wild and desperate. When M’ajah finally tore her mouth from his with a long moan, his eyes were dark and clouded with desire as he looked at her like she was the most precious thing in the world.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ajah…” Her name broke from his lips as he came undone, and she held him close, whispering caresses and endearments onto his skin as he spilled into her thrust after thrust.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She found herself cradled in his arms and the light of the sun falling through the window with all the beauty and glory of a new morning not much later, still breathing heavily and utterly relaxed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His teeth nuzzled the tip of her ear, and M’ajah giggled as the feeling tickled down her entire body, her nose brushing along his neck before she captured his mouth in a quick kiss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So what?” she asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia’s grin had something smug about it as he looked at her. “Did I win the challenge?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She laughed, unable to resist the urge to tease him. “Well, I am still able to move and talk, so obviously, I </span>
  <em>
    <span>could</span>
  </em>
  <span> withstand it, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hm,” he purred, his eyes narrowing and the corner of his lips rising at her words, “I see. That’s how it is. Unable to move and talk afterwards, I think I can manage that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, I’d love to see you try one day,” she chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“One day? Why not now?” he gave back with a glint in his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her smile softened somewhat and she trailed her hand down his chest. “Mia…” she started quietly before she trailed off again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was enough to make him perk up, and both his eyebrows rose as he paused in his caresses. “What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah bit her lip as she looked at him, then she took a deep breath. There was nothing for it. “Mia, I’m going to leave,” she said softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The smile vanished from his face and he pushed himself up on one elbow. “What? Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah gave him an unhappy look. “Because… because Thea is right. We need to make this work and for that, we, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> would have to be a better actress. And I’m not.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia let out a long breath and sat up, running both hands through his hair. The lingering tension between them from a moment ago had disappeared completely, and M’ajah’s heart clenched as she saw the mix of disappointment and unhappiness in his face. She pushed herself up into a seating position as well, reaching for his hand and intertwining her fingers with his.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t want you to go,” Eremia said after a moment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t want to leave,” she confessed, looking at their intertwined fingers. “But I don’t know how to be with you when I cannot </span>
  <em>
    <span>be</span>
  </em>
  <span> with you. Not after… this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>I don’t know if I can watch you play being in love with someone else. </span>
  </em>
  <span>She didn’t say it, but it lay heavy and bitter on her tongue. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe if we… I don’t know, just meet in the evenings?” Eremia said, but the words were barely out before he shook his head with a low groan, his ears drooping.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It won’t work,” M’ajah murmured, telling him what they both knew. “Especially not when you’re going on the pilgrimage through the country to seek the Gods’ blessing for the wedding. I mean, there will probably be spies following you, but it’s not like you need me as a bodyguard.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t want you to go,” Eremia repeated, his fingers tightening around hers. His other hand came to her face, lifting her chin until she looked into his eyes again. “Not after we’re finally here and with each other. I don’t care that you’re right and that it would be smart, I just…” A muscle in his jaw tightened as he pressed his lips together. “I just want you with me,” he murmured.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her eyes were bright and she couldn’t help the smile at his words, the excited tingle in her stomach. “Believe me, I want the same,” she confessed, inching closer until she could brush her nose over his, her forehead resting against his. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Gods, </span>
  </em>
  <span>how much she wanted that. “But…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know,” he said roughly. “I know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a moment, they just stayed like they were, holding each other close. M’ajah held her eyes closed, trying to commit every sensation of being here with him to memory. His scent, the feeling of his skin against hers, the way he touched her… She wanted to make sure she’d remember it all in the following days and weeks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When will you leave?” he eventually asked very quietly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… I originally wanted to leave with the dawn, but you distracted me,” M’ajah murmured.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It had the desired effect, and Eremia chuckled slightly. “You mean, I just need to distract you some more and you’ll stay?” he asked teasingly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She grinned, pulling back a bit so she could look him in the eyes. “As much as I appreciate the thought of you distracting me so thoroughly I won’t be </span>
  <em>
    <span>able</span>
  </em>
  <span> to leave, I fear that would kind of miss the point of what we’re trying to achieve.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I never said it was a </span>
  <em>
    <span>good</span>
  </em>
  <span> plan, I just said I would appreciate it if it would mean you’ll stay,” he said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah knew he was joking, but there was something vulnerable in his voice that made her reach for him in an instant, kissing him desperately.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Ask me,</span>
  </em>
  <span> she thought, </span>
  <em>
    <span>ask me to stay and I will.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>It was stupid and reckless, she knew, but as he pulled her closer, burying his hand in her hair to angle her head so he could deepen the kiss, fangs scratching over her lips in a way that made her utterly breathless, she also knew that she would indeed stay if he truly asked her to. And that they both would regret it more than they could ever enjoy their time together if it would lead to Althea being captured and killed by Garleans.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When she eventually pulled back, her eyes were a bit too shiny, her smile wavering. Eremia brushed a strand of hair out of her face, but before he could say something, she quickly said, “I’ll go take a shower and then I’ll leave. It’s better to get it over with quickly, no need to draw this out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re probably right,” he murmured, but M’ajah could see in his eyes that he still didn’t like the idea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will be back for the wedding,” she said a bit too brightly, “it would be weird if I weren’t there. And I… I don’t know how long we… how long you need to hold up the charade, but maybe…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” Eremia just said quietly when she trailed off, the tension in him very obvious and his eyes burning into hers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah let out a long sigh, her shoulders dropping. “Mia,” she whispered hoarsely, “I didn’t… I didn’t mean for it to happen this way. I am sorry.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He just shook his head. “Don’t apologize, please. There is nothing to be sorry for.” His ears flicked as he added, “Unless you regret-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” she interrupted him before he could even finish his sentence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His smile was full of relief and tenderness. “Good.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It still took her a while until she managed to make herself get up and go into the bathroom. She didn’t need much time to pack, and when Eremia came out of the shower, she was already done. He pulled her into his arms and held her close for a long time; neither saying anything. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll see you in a few weeks,” M’ajah said eventually and untangled herself, giving him a smile that felt horribly forced.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Be safe, Ajah,” he murmured. “I…” He trailed off without finishing whatever he wanted to say, just his eyes burning into hers with unspoken emotions.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You too,” she answered softly when he didn’t continue, brushing her lips over his cheek before she turned and left.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As she closed the door behind her, she hesitated for a long, silent moment, eyes stinging with unshed tears. So many things left unsaid, left undone, and for a second, she wanted nothing more but to turn around and go back in, telling him all those words that seemed to burn on her tongue even though it was far too early to voice them. And yet, she knew that leaving was the right thing to do. Althea’s life was at stake, and she wouldn’t let her friend down. Taking a deep breath, M’ajah started to walk. A few minutes later, she raised her hand towards the Aetheryte and summoned her aether to activate the teleportation magicks without looking back. </span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The following weeks were easier than M’ajah had feared they would be. There was never a lack of work for a Scion of the Seventh Dawn, and with primals stirring in all regions plus the additional Garlean activity, she couldn’t complain about even one too-quiet minute. Arenvald, A’aba, and Aulie were only too happy to have her accompany them again, and M’ajah filled her days with reconnaissance and fighting, planning and strategizing. If she was a bit too thorough and reckless within her duties, nobody complained about it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And at the same time, it was worse than anything she could have imagined. For during the nights, no duty kept her thoughts at bay, kept her distracted from missing him so badly that her whole body seemed to hurt. She missed his easy companionship, the songs he sang or played when they were making camp, the laughter and even his annoyed grumbling when he got hungry or found it raining in the morning. She missed the wordless understanding between them, his way of making her feel seen and cared about, of making her laugh at the most absurd times. And she missed talking to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now that she wasn’t with him, she realized just how much time they had spent with each other before. It was not only the two or three weeks they had been working and traveling together before their first kiss. She could barely remember a single week they hadn’t seen each other at least once ever since they first met. Every other day, M’ajah caught herself thinking “I’ll have to tell Mia about this”, and every time, the realization that she wouldn’t be able to dropped like a stone into her stomach. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Especially with the Garlean spies being sighted across all lands, neither she nor Eremia dared to use linkpearls for more than the most superficial conversations -  if they dared it at all - lest they be overheard. But it was more than that. Nobody knew whether the Garleans were actually after Althea, trying to get to her before the wedding could occur or whether they had an ulterior motive, but M’ajah wasn’t the only one on edge. Minfilia had appointed various people to keep an eye out, and both Eremia and Althea kept her apprised of their progress through the lands. Every time M’ajah returned to the Waking Sands, she got an update on where they were, but it did only so much to alleviate her worries.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>More than once, she thought about just taking the next aetheryte to the location closest to where Eremia and Althea were and go meet them - just for an hour or two, just to see him, just to talk to him, to make sure they were both alright - and every time, she decided against it. Instead, she found herself buying wedding gifts and looking for a dress to wear for the occasion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And an occasion it would be.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After they had told Minfilia about the plan, the Antecedent had decided to make it a statement - both to Garlemald that anyone who decided to leave their ranks and join the Scions would be safe and to the city-states that they had no excuse not to grant official citizenship to anyone fighting for their cause and for the safety of all of Eorzea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Preparing for the wedding was the strangest experience. There were only a handful of people who knew about the actual reason for the wedding, and most Scions were oblivious to the fact that it was fake. Those close to Eremia and Althea were surprised but not so much so that they doubted it, and M’ajah did her best to play along. It did not help to make her miss him less.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The day of the wedding was utterly beautiful, one of those warm days in mid-autumn where everything seemed to be tinged golden and red. The nights had already turned chilly, but the days still held something of the heat of summer, and as the guests milled into the Sanctum of the Twelve among laughter and talk, the sun was shining bright and a soft breeze whipped the first falling leaves merrily through the air.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah hadn’t managed to bring herself to come early and was one of the last people to slip into the Sanctum. Throughout the ceremony, she kept, in turn, fearing or hoping Eremia would glance at her, but he seemed utterly devoted and concentrated on Althea who looked the perfect, happy bride. It was exactly like she had seen in her vision; a beam of light falling through the stained glass and bathing them in colors and light as they held up their rings for everyone to see with a happy laugh.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah did her best to join in the cheering, but it was only at the party afterwards, when the Elder Seedseer officially presented Althea with her proof of citizenship, that something of the weight upon her breast was lifted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This was what they had aimed for.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Of course, M’ajah had no guarantee that citizenship would suffice to null the vision of Thea’s future she had had, but something told her that it had worked. With a relieved smile, she put her present on the gift table. It was a small crystal ball normally used for scrying she had specifically had made for Althea, with a little note attached that said “To a future that is utterly clear and yours to shape”.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Minfilia hadn’t lied when she had said they would make it </span>
  <em>
    <span>an occasion.</span>
  </em>
  <span> The party was big and loud, with more people present than M’ajah had ever seen gathered for one event. It made it easy to just disappear in the crowd, hiding behind a glass of sparkling wine and keeping close to her friends. She had congratulated Eremia and Althea earlier, full of half-faked cheerfulness and honest relief that everything had worked out, but with this many people around, there hadn’t been a moment where they could have properly talked. It was enough to put her on edge, full of confusion and uncertainty about how to behave best.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Throughout the afternoon and into the night, she kept hoping in vain for an opportunity to catch Eremia alone, even for just one minute, but in the end, she resigned herself to watch from the side. She wasn’t even sure what she wanted to do if she managed to have a moment with Eremia to herself - or rather, what she </span>
  <em>
    <span>could</span>
  </em>
  <span> do without raising suspicion that wouldn’t end up torturing either of them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, who are you pining after?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sudden voice from next to her surprised her so much that M’ajah nearly spilled her drink.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” she gasped, turning to look into the face of a Miqo’te not much older than herself, who gave her a bright grin. They had strikingly green eyes and shoulder-length, silver hair and a surprisingly familiar-looking smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m just saying you have the looks of someone yearning desperately for someone while you’re watching the dancefloor.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah couldn’t help the flustered stammer, but the other person just laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” they said, “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I just thought maybe nobody had noticed so far and you need someone to ask the blunt question in case you want to talk about it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I…” M’ajah started, still somewhat flustered, then she let out a short laugh and shook her head. Judging from the open look and the warm smile, the Miqo’te was genuinely interested. “No, I… no,” she still said. There was no way she could speak about it all. Clearing her throat, she let her gaze wander over the dance floor before turning back to her new companion. “Why, are </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>yearning for someone and need to talk about it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Always,” they grinned. “Too many pretty people around not to do that. And it </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> a wedding, after all. Perfect time to yearn for someone and end up spending the night with someone else.” They gave her a wink that was so over the top that M’ajah couldn’t help laughing. “I’m Laen, by the way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah took the offered hand with a smile. “M’ajah.” Then she paused as she processed the name and her eyes widened. Suddenly, the familiarity made sense. “Wait, Laen… you’re Mia’s sibling?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The Miqo’te put a hand on their chest and bowed their head. “The very same. I see he spoke about me -  I hope only in the most glorious and flattering terms!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” M’ajah assured them, but Laen only laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re not a very good liar.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But I mean it!” M’ajah protested. “You’re a monk, right? You’ve been in Ul’dah for quite some time and came back to Gridania afterwards. Mia told me about how you used to roam the forest together.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, look at that, he </span>
  <em>
    <span>did</span>
  </em>
  <span> talk about me,” Laen grinned, clinking their glass against M’ajah’s. “Did he also tell you about the pearl clover incident?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You mean the one where he had to defend you against a very angry Spriggan while you insisted on studying the strange new plant you found that in the end turned out to be common pearl clover?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My version is a bit more exciting, but yes,” Laen chuckled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh?” M’ajah’s eyes sparkled. “How is your version more exciting?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, imagine the most beautiful plant you have </span>
  <em>
    <span>ever</span>
  </em>
  <span> seen,” Laen started and jumped into a tale that soon had M’ajah laughing tears.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They continued to share stories and anecdotes, and it didn’t take long until M’ajah had, for the first time this day, the feeling of actually enjoying herself. Laen was just as charming and flirty as Eremia was, if with somewhat less seriousness, and more than once, M’ajah was struck by the similarities between the siblings.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She didn’t even realize someone approaching them when a voice next to her suddenly said with barely veiled amusement, “I do hope they’re not bothering you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah’s heart skipped a whole beat as she looked up to find Eremia standing next to her. “Mia,” she breathed, hoping that the sudden flush in her cheeks would be attributed to the empty glass in her hand that Laen was currently refilling. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He gave her a bright smile. “Hello Ajah,” he murmured.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The way he looked at her sent a shiver down her back, and for a second, she felt like nothing would ever be able to tear her eyes off him again. The longing that had crept back into a corner of her mind during her talk with Laen was back in full force, and it took all she had to keep herself from stepping into his embrace.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen seemed oblivious about the tension between them and merely refilled their own glass. “Of course I’m not bothering her, I would never bother beautiful women.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia tore his eyes away from M’ajah and gave his sibling a long look. “Sure,” he said dryly. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Especially </span>
  </em>
  <span>not beautiful women, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Exactly,” Laen grinned. “Also, what is it to you with whom I flirt, you are a married man!” They didn’t notice the suddenly uncomfortable look Eremia threw at M’ajah and gave her another wink. “Tell him I’m right, I didn’t bother you at all, did I?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah chuckled, quickly pushing the weird feeling at their comment aside. “No, you didn’t bother me in the least.” Turning back to Eremia, she said solemnly, “Laen was the perfect company and no bother at all. In fact, I was quite happy they came to talk to me. All those stories I’ve never heard before.” Her eyes sparked with amusement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia drew in a sharp breath, looking suddenly somewhat alarmed at his sibling. “Please don’t tell me you told her about… you know what!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen’s grin widened. “You mean the chocobo story? I was just getting to that!” Eagerly, they turned back to M’ajah and started in a conspiratorial tone, “So, imagine young Eremia, just out of his diapers-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was sixteen!” Eremia protested, already reaching for Laen who just continued as if he hadn’t said anything.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“…and in proud possession of his very first choco-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They couldn’t continue when suddenly a hand clasped over their mouth, and Eremia gave them a glare. “Not another word!” he growled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah couldn’t help the giggle bubbling up in her at the situation, especially when Laen seemed utterly unimpressed by their brother’s threatening tone and just laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine, fine, I won’t tell another word,” they said when they had freed themself from Eremia’s grasp. “I mean, nobody wants to hear about you chafing your naked ass on a chocobo because you thought it would look cool and couldn’t sit for days anyway.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Laen!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah could barely hear Eremia’s exasperated growling over her laughing. Already, her belly was aching and she wiped a hand over her eyes while Eremia turned towards her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They have no idea what they’re-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, I do, and it was such a glorious sight-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Also it wasn’t half as bad as-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It definitely was.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah just nodded, unable to form words through her laughter. She was still trying to catch her breath when a silver-haired woman joined them, giving both Eremia and Laen a stern look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really, Laen, do you have to embarrass your brother at his own wedding?” she scolded them even though the corner of her mouth twitched with a barely suppressed smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not that bad, mother,” Laen chuckled. “I mean, I could’ve told his </span>
  <em>
    <span>bride.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>For a second, M’ajah and Eremia’s eyes met, and she bit her lip, realizing that she had no idea whether his family knew that the wedding was a hoax. And even if, she was pretty sure he had not told them about </span>
  <em>
    <span>her</span>
  </em>
  <span>. There was something in Eremia’s eyes she could not quite interpret, but before she could think more about it, he already turned back to Laen, giving his sibling a dark look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh yes, that would have been worse than telling my closest friend.” The sarcasm in his voice was dripping, and M’ajah quickly hid her smile by taking a large sip from her glass.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Closest friend?” A sudden spark of interest came into the woman’s eyes as she looked at M’ajah. “How come we haven’t met her before?” She gave M’ajah a smile and put out her hand. “I am Rowan. And I have the feeling I’ve seen you before.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah shook her hand and inclined her head in recognition. “I believe we might have met at the guild in Gridania?” she asked. “I have studied conjury under Brother E-Sumi-Yan.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rowan’s eyes widened. “Ah, yes, you’re his favorite student, are you not?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah held up a hand. “Oh, no, that’s Layanna, she’s the White Mage.” She pointed over where she saw her friend talking to Alphinaud. “I’m nothing special.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“On the contrary,” Eremia said quietly before he caught himself and cleared his throat. “Ajah’s been with the Scions for about eight months now and we’ve worked closely together ever since,” he explained a bit too formerly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen raised their eyebrows and gave M’ajah a curious look. But instead of the teasing she expected, they turned to their mother and said, “Well, what did you expect, we met </span>
  <em>
    <span>Althea</span>
  </em>
  <span> only once before and he married her. I’d be more surprised if he </span>
  <em>
    <span>would</span>
  </em>
  <span> bring home his friends.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia looked a bit caught, but Rowan nodded knowingly. “Well, that is true. You’ve always had a lot from your father, going from place to place. I wouldn’t know </span>
  <em>
    <span>his </span>
  </em>
  <span>best friend if I stood next to them.” She chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your father! Is he here as well?” M’ajah couldn’t help her curiosity, but all three shook their heads.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t even know how to contact him,” Eremia said easily. His mother and sibling nodded along with his words, but none of them seemed bothered by the fact. “But that way we always have a lot to talk about when we next meet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“True,” Rowan smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was the strangest and warmest feeling at the same time, talking to Eremia and his family. They had an easy-going, welcoming way that made M’ajah feel very much included and reminded her of evenings long ago when her own family had entertained guests. It was a bittersweet memory, but for once, the black grief that usually threatened to overwhelm her when she dared think of them stayed at bay. Althea joined them not much later, and they extended the same warmth to her, the conversation flowing easy and filled with laughter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are your plans now?” Laen asked eventually. The party was slowly coming to an end, and they were sitting comfortably in a corner, M’ajah with another piece of cake on her plate and happily licking whipped cream off her fork. “Long honeymoon ahead?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia and Althea exchanged a look, then Althea shook her head. “I am afraid that has to wait,” she said, swirling her wine in her glass. “We have been away from our duties for too long already, and with the looming threat of primals, there is too much to do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So you’re back to work immediately?” Rowan frowned a bit disapprovingly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We don’t mind,” Eremia assured her, and the look that found M’ajah sent a bout of warmth through her. “Actually, we’re both looking forward to going back to traveling and working with our friends.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah gave him a smile, a giddy tingle waking in her stomach. She knew they would have to be careful even now, unable to openly show or act upon their feelings. But once they would travel again, there would be opportunities, she was sure of it. They would be able to-</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The thought was interrupted by a sharp pain, and M’ajah’s eyes widened and went dark as the vision flooded her senses.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Screams louder than the sounds of fighting, the magic of Eremia’s song still quivering in the air as he staggers backwards with a groan, his bow breaking with a horrible snap. Blood is dripping from his brow and he growls loudly, fangs flashing as he reaches for his hunting knife.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>A shot shatters the air before he can lunge at his attacker, and he stops short with a soundless gasp. “No.” A flower of dark red blossoms in the middle of his chest, soaking his shirt, impossibly beautiful before it turns horrible. Eremia tenderly touches it, a look of utter surprise on his face.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Another shot, more red, this time at his shoulder, and he falls, falls, falls into darkness.</span>
  </em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Eremia didn’t know what exactly he had expected to happen during and after the wedding.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It certainly wasn’t that </span>
  <em>
    <span>nothing</span>
  </em>
  <span> changed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The surge of happiness when he saw M’ajah and the light in her eyes when she smiled at him was nearly overwhelming. A part of him had certainly hoped for a meeting far from prying eyes, even though he knew that it would be too risky. Not when they were so close to their goal. But knowing this did nothing to ease the longing he felt when he saw her again after so many weeks. He had missed her like crazy before the wedding, but it was when he saw her again that he truly realized just how much. The urge to just grab her, pull her against his chest and never let her go again was so strong that it took all his self-control not to give in to it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Time and again, he found his attention wandering during the celebration, his eyes searching for her. Every now and then, their eyes met, a carefully controlled smile coming to her lips, but she was quick to look away again, and Eremia felt like his heart broke a bit each time she did.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Knowing that it was deliberate, that it was caution and not an actual rejection did only so much to help. He was sorely tempted to try and catch her in a hallway or outside at some point, but the occasion never arose - and even if it had, he wasn’t sure whether he would have actually taken it. Too much was at stake, and M’ajah had left for a reason.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The moment Althea held the proof of her citizenship in her hands, the relief in her eyes palpable, Eremia knew it had been worth it. The sacrifice both he and M’ajah had made as they deliberately kept apart, the show he and Althea had put on, all the time they had kept up appearances; all of it had been worth it. After the ceremony, Saran and Adriene came to him and Thea and told them of the two Garleans they had detained before they could do whatever they had come to do, and not long afterward, Althea showed him the note M’ajah had left with her present. </span>
  <em>
    <span>To a future that is utterly clear and yours to shape.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think we did it,” Althea said, something like disbelief in her voice. “It actually worked.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He grinned at her, the relief in him just as noticeable as in her. “Told you so. We wouldn’t have left you at their mercy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was the first time in weeks that he allowed himself to think further ahead than up to this specific point - and that he saw M’ajah with his family not much later seemed like a good omen. Even more so when it became obvious that they liked each other, and her laughter pearled through the air.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Maybe he shouldn’t have joined them, but he couldn’t resist, especially when she didn’t avert her gaze any longer but openly laughed at him. He had never been able to resist her laugh; and so he joined them, pretending for a blissful time that this was how it was going to be. Or at least the feeling of connectedness and ease between them all, if not the lack of touch between him and M’ajah.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There were moments when M’ajah looked at him with all the softness and warmth that had made him fall so hard for her, and Eremia had to take care not to stare, not to let his emotions show plainly on his face. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Soon,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he thought, a desperate longing in his heart that mirrored what he sensed in M’ajah, </span>
  <em>
    <span>soon we can be with each other again.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>But then, she froze in that way he had come to dread. M’ajah was so good at hiding her visions that it had taken him a while to notice it without fail, but by now, the nearly imperceptible flutter of her lashes as her gaze became unfocused and the tremble in her tail were dead giveaways for him. And like so often after a vision, something in M’ajah seemed to dim. As if the light inside her suddenly darkened. Not for the first time, he asked himself why Hydaelyn would burden someone with such a gift.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ajah?” he asked carefully, reaching to touch her hand, ignoring the way Laen’s eyebrows shut up at the intimate address. “Are you alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was as if his touch was what brought her out of whatever she had seen, and she blinked, once, twice, before her gaze sharpened again and focused on him. His heart clenched at the barely concealed horror in her eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” she lied, her smile utterly unconvincing. “Of course. I’m… just tired. I think I need to go to bed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are y-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, I’m sure,” she interrupted him before he could even finish the sentence. There was something apologetic and pained in her eyes as she looked at him, but when she turned to smile at the others, something of her usual warmth came back. “Thank you for a lovely evening. Good night!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia could feel the surprise at her sudden departure in his family, but M’ajah had already gotten up and they could barely wish her good night before she was gone. He followed her with his eyes, worry rising with every hurried step she took away from them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen leaned over, their hand hard on Eremia’s knee as they asked in a sharp, quiet voice, “Do we need to talk about something, dear brother?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” he mumbled absentmindedly and without looking at his sibling, his thoughts still with M’ajah.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Their grip turned bruising, and Eremia hissed as he finally turned to Laen, giving them a glowering look. It was only when Laen looked pointedly at the wedding ring that still felt so weird on his finger that Eremia let out a long breath. “No,” he repeated in a firm voice. “Nothing to talk about. Promise.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t like lying to his family, but this was not the time to let them in on the secret they were protecting. That would come later. Laen narrowed their eyes at him, but after a moment, they let go with a look that told Eremia that this would not be the last he heard of it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t care. Whatever M’ajah had seen had truly spooked her, he knew.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Althea interlaced her fingers with his, pressing his hand slightly in the silent sign they had come up with to remind the other one of what they were supposed to be. With a dazzling smile, she leaned closer so the others wouldn’t hear what she said and whispered, “We can retire if you want to go after her to see if she is alright.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He gave her a grateful look and a tiny nod, and Thea immediately pulled him up with her. “We will take our cue as well,” she said, smiling at Rowan and Laen. “Thank you all. We will see you tomorrow morning.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was nothing of the teasing Laen normally would have subjected him to, just a piercing glance, but Eremia’s focus was already somewhere else and he barely paid any attention to them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, Thea,” he murmured as they left the hall.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She is my friend, too,” Althea only said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But M’ajah wasn’t in her room, nor to be found anywhere on the premises. None of those still awake seemed to have seen her, and eventually, Eremia gave up looking for her. Apparently, she didn’t want to talk right now. He would speak to her in the morning.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>However, she didn’t turn up for breakfast either, and when he went to look for her, he found her room empty, neither luggage nor weapons anywhere in sight. The only thing of hers still here was her linkpearl, lying on the nightstand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah had left.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia was still trying to process what was going on when a voice behind him made him turn around.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Care to tell me why you’re not in bed with your </span>
  <em>
    <span>wife</span>
  </em>
  <span> the morning after your wedding but standing in another woman’s room?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen leaned in the doorway, arms crossed before their chest, and gave Eremia a scathing look.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia closed his hands to fists and relaxed them again, worry swirling dark and heavy inside him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not what you think, Laen,” he said from between clenched teeth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He threw a last look towards the unused bed, then he walked towards the door. He needed to talk to Thea and then find someone, </span>
  <em>
    <span>anyone,</span>
  </em>
  <span> who knew what in all the hells was going on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But his sibling had other ideas. Grabbing Eremia’s arm before he could leave, Laen hissed, “Does Althea know you’re cheating on her?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Anger flashed in Eremia’s eyes and he pulled his arm out of Laen’s grip with a sharp tug. “I’m not cheating on anyone,” he shot back, fangs bared and ears flattened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then what-” Laen started, but Eremia interrupted them immediately.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, for fuck’s sake, shut it,” he growled, eyes going up and down the hallway that was thankfully empty, then he pulled his sibling into M’ajah’s room and closed the door behind them. Clearly, some kind of explanation was in order, even if he’d rather find out where M’ajah was. “You’d have to be in a relationship to be able to cheat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?!” Laen stared at him, then grabbed his hand with the wedding ring. “Then what by the Twelve is this?!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A ploy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was enough to stun his sibling into silence, and Eremia let out a long sigh, raking his hands through his hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Althea is a Garlean refugee and wanted by them,” he explained in a low, terse voice. “And since the city-states couldn’t make up their damned minds about giving her asylum, we forced their hand.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen’s eyes widened. “The citizenship,” they said slowly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia nodded. “Yes. It was all rather sudden, but necessary.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And M’ajah? What does she have to do with all of this?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a moment, Eremia hesitated. “She’s… special,” he eventually just said. It was not enough, not enough by far, but how was he supposed to quickly summarize what she meant to him? He had barely had time to properly talk to </span>
  <em>
    <span>M’ajah</span>
  </em>
  <span> about it all, hadn’t had time to be with her and truly understand the extent of his feelings for her. He just knew that it was killing him not to have her near, not to know where she was and why.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen gave him a long look he couldn’t quite interpret. “So you don’t love her,” they stated after a second. “Althea, I mean.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He took a breath. “I do, but as a friend. And it’s the same for her. But we need to keep up appearances for a while at least.” Eremia’s eyes went to the window, squinting into the morning sun. “We’re pretty sure that Garlemald will try something, and nobody should be able to question our union.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At that, Laen’s eyes narrowed. “Well, you’re doing a shit job at it then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was enough to get his temper up again and his tail whipped through the air. “It’s not like this was planned!” Eremia hissed. “We were supposed to go back to our duties and out of the public eye, we were supposed to be able to-” </span>
  <em>
    <span>To be with each other,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he wanted to say, stopping himself just in time. “Not to disappear in the middle of the night without any message.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He couldn’t keep the frustration and hurt out of his voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen watched him with intense eyes, and after a moment, they touched his arm. “Sorry for accusing you of infidelity,” they said quietly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia nodded. “It’s fine,” he mumbled, even though he felt anything but fine. “Keep it quiet, will you? I have to go find out-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was interrupted by a short, quiet knock on the door. Before either of them could say anything, it opened, and Layanna came in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought I might find you here,” she said, closing the door behind her again. She eyed Laen in surprise, but Eremia already took a quick step towards her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My sibling,” he explained curtly before adding in an urgent voice, “Do you know where she is?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes and no,” Layanna sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Layanna smoothed her hands over her skirt. “I don’t know where exactly M’ajah is right now, but I know that she has gone to find something to save you. And that-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She was interrupted by Laen. “Save him? What is that supposed to mean?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia’s eyes widened in sudden understanding. “That was the vision,” he murmured, a strange feeling blossoming in his chest. “She saw my death again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?!” Laen exclaimed, but Eremia ignored them for the moment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What exactly is she trying to do?” he asked Lay who looked at him with a pained expression. “It’s not like she can change anything.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know,” his friend confessed. “But I know she is going to try anyway. She asked Adriene, Saran, and Nayan to accompany her - and she has asked me to help as well. I’m going to teach you Conjury.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia frowned. “Conjury? Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can someone please explain what in all the hells is going on?” Laen interjected, taking Eremia’s elbow. “Mia, what do you mean with ‘she saw your death’?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a second, a tense silence fell. Then, Eremia turned to his sibling whose eyes were wide. For once, there was none of Laen’s usual teasing to be found in their expression.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ajah has visions of the future,” Eremia explained quietly. “Of situations and events that still have to happen. Some, she can change. Some, she cannot do anything about. And one of those she can’t change showed, well, my death.” With a look towards Lay, he added, “She had that vision again, didn’t she?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Layanna nodded. “In more details, I think,” she said very softly. “She told me she believes there is not much time left.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The words settled heavily between them, and Eremia swallowed hard. He had always known about M’ajah’s vision, from the very beginning, but so far, he had never really thought about it, hadn’t wanted to think about it. It had been something far away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess, I’m not going to die of old age in bed, after all,” he said jokingly, but nobody laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When were you going to tell us?” Laen asked into the silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia pressed his lips together as he saw the fear and anger in his sibling’s eyes. “I wasn’t going to,” he confessed. “There was nothing to tell. Ajah never told me what exactly she saw nor did I ask her.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What was I supposed to do?” Eremia asked before Laen could finish their sentence. “It could be anything! Me tripping and falling off a cliff, or choking on a piece of fishbone, or being squished by a Goobbue. You know what I do for a living, the threat of death is something I face every day. That’s nothing new!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen gave him a stubborn look. “This is different,” they maintained.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Which is why I never wanted to know the details.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Layanna cleared her throat. “Well, I’m going to tell you now anyway,” she said in a surprisingly firm voice and adjusted her glasses. “Because you need to know so we can prepare a defense.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia frowned. “You know there’s no changing the outcome.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Layanna pushed her chin forward in a way that told him she wouldn’t allow any backtalk. “That doesn’t mean we won’t try. M’ajah saw you get shot by a Garlean gunblade, so we’ll focus on your ability to quickly heal bleeding wounds.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A Garlean gunblade?” Laen said, the color draining from their cheeks. “Didn’t you say that Althea is wanted by Garlemald? Do you mean that this </span>
  <em>
    <span>wedding</span>
  </em>
  <span> is what might kill him in the end?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” Eremia said quietly, even though the same thought had crossed his mind. “And even if, it doesn’t change anything. Even if I had known, I would’ve done it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is madness,” Laen said, but Eremia knew them well enough to know that it was their own helplessness at the situation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Welcome to the Scions of the Seventh Dawn,” he shrugged. “Madness is what we do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Actually, what we’re doing now,” Layanna interjected, “is get our stuff and go to the Waking Sands, far away from the Gridanian border with Garlemald. And there, you’ll learn how to heal.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good luck with that,” Laen murmured, and Eremia’s lips curled into a slight smile. They both remembered Eremia’s disinterest in anything pertaining to Conjury. Laen’s eyes were shimmering as they turned to their brother. “What can I do, Mia?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Take care of Mother.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen scoffed. “As if she needs someone to take care of her.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia grinned, embracing the lighter mood of his sibling’s words, knowing it was their way of dealing with the darkness lingering beneath everything that had been said. And his mother would indeed have his head if she knew he had even suggested something like that. “Well then, keep Garleans out of Eorzea?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a dangerous gleam in Laen’s eyes as they nodded. “I can do that.” They closed him into a tight embrace. “I love you, Mia. Be careful.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You too,” Eremia answered. “And keep your blabbermouth shut about all this, you hear?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Laen chuckled. “I’ll try, but you know how it is.” They gave Layanna a wink. “One beautiful person and I cannot keep my tongue still.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lay smiled politely, but after a second, her eyes widened in sudden understanding. “Oh,” she breathed, a faint blush rising into her cheeks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, now she gets it,” Laen grinned. “Good luck teaching him,” they added. “Try not to kill him before the Garleans can even come close.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I, uh, yes,” Layanna said, fumbling for words. “I’ll try.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia huffed a laugh. “Just ignore them,” he said, taking M’ajah’s linkpearl from the nightstand and pocketing it before he followed the other two out. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It did not help to ease his mind that nobody had any idea where M’ajah had taken the other three, but Layanna proved to be such a demanding teacher that he barely had any time to worry.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a few days, Eremia tried to focus solely on Layanna’s lessons, learning to get in tune with the elements around him and to draw strength from them to concentrate his aether to heal wounds. Althea had taken to joining them, first as something like a bodyguard, then, once he had the basics down, with a more hands-on approach. The first time she slashed her knife over his arm, he was too shocked to react immediately.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thea!” Layanna exclaimed, only to huff just a second later. “Actually, why am I surprised, I should have expected that. Eremia, heal yourself!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… wh… fine,” he growled, shooting Althea a sharp glance while he pushed the pain aside and concentrated on closing the wound that had started to bleed profoundly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His friend - </span>
  <em>
    <span>and wife,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he reminded himself - just shrugged. “Your enemy will not wait until you are ready either,” she said. “Also, shouldn’t you have that regeneration spell going at all times?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, you should,” Layanna said sternly, barely waiting until he had closed the wound before she turned to Althea. “Again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” Eremia managed to get out, just in time renewing the regeneration spell before Thea drew blood again. He hissed at the sharp pain, but already, the wound started to close.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good,” Layanna nodded contentedly, observing him closely. “Let’s keep going.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was hard not to get annoyed by the amount of protectiveness and diligence that went into training him. He knew they just wanted the best for him, though, and so, he bit his tongue, holding back the annoyed complaints about not having a single moment to himself and about the lack of sleep. It hadn’t taken long until Lay and Thea woke him in the middle of the night to ‘test’ him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you keep this up, I will die of sleep deprivation before a Garlean comes even close,” he growled after the third time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Althea seemed utterly unperturbed, but Layanna’s expression softened somewhat. “I am sorry, Eremia,” she said, “but not only would I not forgive myself if anything happened to you before M’ajah is back, </span>
  <em>
    <span>she</span>
  </em>
  <span> wouldn’t forgive me either.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His ears flicked as he huffed in annoyance. “Very well,” he mumbled. “I just hope you submit the others who have more of a habit to throw themselves into danger to a similar ordeal.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lay chuckled. “Duly noted. Although I fear that Nayan or Thea might come to enjoy it too much for their own good.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have no idea what you mean,” Thea said straight-faced, but the way her ear twitched made Eremia grin.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>M’ajah and the others returned to the Waking Sands the day afterward, all of them exhausted, filthy, and sore. Layanna was walking him through the basics of using Cure for the umpteenth time of the day, and Eremia had a hard time keeping his attention focused; especially since he hadn’t slept through a whole night for nearly a week now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When the door opened, Eremia fully expected to see Althea, coming back to submit him to another session of ‘getting results’ as she liked to call it. But instead of the dark-haired Viera, a shimmer of green hair and a tentative, tired smile made him perk up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ajah,” he breathed, relief washing through him as M’ajah slipped into the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At the same moment, Layanna said in a shocked voice, “What have you done?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>M’ajah paused, a pained expression flickering over her face as she looked to their friend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, Lay, but there was no other way,” she said softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Layanna pressed her lips together, but after a second, she nodded once. “We’ll talk about this later,” she just said, then she left them alone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sudden silence in the room was deafening, and for a moment, Eremia didn’t know what to think, what to do. M’ajah was still standing next to the door and looking at him with burning eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her hair was bound back into the nape of her neck but had come half out of the hairband, there was dirt and something that looked like dried blood on her clothes and skin, and her eyes were dark and red-rimmed with exhaustion. There was something about her he hadn’t noticed before, as if a shimmer lay in her eyes that hadn’t been there before. Eremia thought she was utterly beautiful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ajah,” he said again, his voice thick with emotion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mia,” she answered, more sigh than answer, and took a step towards him, then another.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was as if a spell had been broken, and the next moment, they were in each other’s arms. Uncaring about the dirt, he pulled her close, lips pressed against hers in a searing kiss. He could feel her arms coming around his neck as she kissed him back, opening her lips beneath his. It took him a while before he could find it in himself to let go of her again, his whole body tingling with the flare of emotion that rushed through him and settled heavily into his heart.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You should’ve taken me with you,” he murmured, his forehead leaning against hers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I couldn’t,” M’ajah answered, and to his surprise and shock, her voice was thick with tears. “Not this time.” Her fingers rested against his neck before they sank down, then she brushed another kiss onto his lips that tasted like salt and sorrow. Her next words stilled him into utter silence, his eyes widening as he stared at her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love you,” she confessed, pressing something into his hand and taking a step back. “I hope you can forgive me one day.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>For a split second, he didn’t know how to react, but before he could even begin to process her words, a bright light started to shimmer from his palm, and a flash of memories and power surged through him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eremia sucked in a sharp breath as he felt a burning tingling on his skin, the places where he was still sore from the various cuts and stabwounds he had healed over the last days easing until even the last sign of them had vanished.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What…” he stammered, but one look at what lay in his palm let all words bleed from his mind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was the Soulstone of a White Mage.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Please mind the changed tags and Archive Warnings!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“They could execute you for this!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah had never seen Minfilia angry before, but there was a first time for everything. She had barely been given enough time to clean herself up before she was called into the Solar, her hair still damp as she stood before the Antecedent.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know,” she answered quietly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Who else knew about it?” Minfilia’s eyes went to the others in the room. Layanna stood next to Adriene, Saran, Nayan, and Eremia, all of them serious and quiet. M’ajah barely dared to look at them, dread swirling deep in her stomach. But even though she knew what she had dragged them into, she couldn’t find it within herself to regret it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nobody knew,” she quickly said before anyone else could say anything. “It was my idea, and mine alone. I just told them about the vision and that I needed their help to get into Amdapor. They didn’t know what I was looking for.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I still would have helped her if I had known,” Adriene said in a firm voice.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna sucked in a sharp breath. “But it’s against the law!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Doesn’t matter,” her cousin insisted. “If it was about-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Enough,” Minfilia interrupted them. “I am not interested in ‘ifs’. We need to deal with the situation at hand.” She sighed and turned back to M’ajah. “I can understand your reasoning to give Eremia a soulstone, but why take one for yourself?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah kept her eyes fixed on a point just behind Minfilia as she spoke, her hands clasped so firmly in each other that her knuckles were white. “I needed to make sure it would work first.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She nearly killed herself, that’s how,” Nayan interjected, his voice grim. “Ran ahead and straight into a group of Hecteyes.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What?!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia’s shocked exclamation made M’ajah turn and look at him before she could stop herself. His eyes were wide and her heart clenched at the knowledge that she was the cause for his pain. “I needed to make sure it would work,” she repeated softly, nearly pleading before she faced Minfilia again. “And it did! I managed to heal myself in a way I never would have managed before.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And at what cost?” Layanna asked sharply.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know how to draw strength from the elementals without hurting them,” M’ajah answered just as sharply. “I am a Conjurer myself, lest you forget.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It is not the same, and you know it!” Layanna’s voice got louder, and she took a step towards her. “You broke one of our most important and sacred laws! You can be glad that the elementals didn’t kill you on the spot when you stepped back in the Twelveswood!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah just pressed her lips together with a stubborn look, fixing her eyes back at the spot behind Minfilia. For a moment, a heavy silence fell, then Layanna sighed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can try to talk to Kan-E-Senna and E-Sumi-Yan,” she offered more calmly. “I’m sure if we tell them that it was just a misunderstanding and you give the soulstones back-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No!” M’ajah snapped, her eyes flaring and ears flattening. “No, we won’t! We need them!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You cannot-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I won’t stand by and watch Eremia die, knowing we had the power to stop it and gave it away!” Eremia met her gaze with a look that was so full of emotion that she was sure her heart would break any second. “I won’t,” she repeated more softly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“M’ajah,” Minfilia said with something that sounded suspiciously like exasperation, and M’ajah turned back to her. “You told me yourself that most of the time, you don’t know when or where your visions will happen. What is different this time? How can you know that whatever happens isn’t still years away?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah tightened her fingers more closely around her own hand to stop herself from fidgeting. “I just… know,” she said lamely, unsure how to explain herself. How to explain all of this, the desperation, the raw horror inside herself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I’ll need more than that.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah let out a long, shuddering breath, closing her eyes for a moment. “The first time I had the vision,” she then explained quietly, “it was barely more than a flash. Just the shot, the blood, and Eremia falling, and the knowledge that it would definitely happen. It’s fixed. I rarely see a vision twice. But when I saw it again, it was more detailed. And it feels… closer.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>As she looked at Eremia, she had the strangest feeling of seeing both </span>
  <em>
    <span>him</span>
  </em>
  <span> and the vision at the same time, and her eyes were shimmering treacherously.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There’s a fight, and it’s more people than just you. Screams. Your song is still in the air, but you’re overpowered. That loud snap as your bow breaks, and there’s a cut on your forehead, blood in your hair.” Her voice got quiet, barely more than a murmur as she stared at and through him. “You’re fighting back against… someone. Garlean uniform. No face, just a helmet, and there isn’t much light, maybe… twilight? Dusk?” She tilted her head as she thought back, trying to get as much details as possible from her pain-stained memories. “I cannot say where it is, not even if there is grass or sand or trees, it’s just you and the soldier. You’re snarling, drawing your hunting knife.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia’s hand fell nearly involuntarily to the knife at his belt, and she nodded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, this one. But before you can even try… there’s this deafening sound, this shot, and then… blood. So much blood. Here.” She laid her hand on her own chest. “You stumble back with that look of surprise. You’d think it’d be pain, but it’s surprise. Then another shot, and more blood. Here.” Her fingers trailed to her shoulder. “And you fall into darkness.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah took a deep breath, forcing herself back to the present. Eremia looked at her with a pained expression that tore into her heart, and she blinked back the threatening tears. “I </span>
  <em>
    <span>know</span>
  </em>
  <span> it’s not far away,” she said hoarsely and turned back to Minfilia. “And I won’t stand by and just let it happen!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia’s eyes were full of sympathy, but when she spoke, there was a softness to her voice that made M’ajah certain that she wouldn’t like what was being said. She was right.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I understand the need to do something, M’ajah, I do. I feel the same. But you said the vision and what will happen is fixed. Is is truly worth-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes!” The word broke from her with enough force to stun Minfilia into silence. “I have to try. Because if I stop trying, I can just go and throw myself off the next cliff.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was a sharp intake of breath from the side, and Minfilia’s eyes widened at her words. The next second, she felt someone take her hand, a warm and reassuring presence at her side.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t say that, Ajah, please.” Eremia’s voice was soft and pleading, and she swallowed hard at the rush of warmth and relief that surged through her. After what she had done, what it meant for him, she hadn’t dared to hope for anything from him. But here he was, holding her hand and looking at her, still with the same emotion from before her reckless deed, and she knew it had been the right thing to do.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t have a death wish,” she assured him quietly. “Otherwise I would’ve gone into Amdapor on my own. But what good are those visions when I cannot even </span>
  <em>
    <span>try?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Why would She send them when I cannot </span>
  <em>
    <span>do</span>
  </em>
  <span> anything?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia hadn’t let go of her hand, and M’ajah was grateful for it, holding onto him as if for sheer life. She sent the others a pleading look in the hope they would at least try to understand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Most of my visions are barely more than a blink, nothing I could even try to put into context, whether they’re fixed or not.” She looked at Adriene. “A splash of blood on white snow.” At Layanna. “Honey being put into tea. Looks delicious.” At Saran. “Sitting in a field of grass under a blue sky. It’s peaceful. And windy.” At Nayan. “Someone’s hand reaching for you, but it’s made of blue crystal.” At Minfilia. “A wall of ice. Or crystal, I’m not sure.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She shook her head. “Others are a scraped knee, or just screams in darkness, or trees with purple leaves, or hedges cut into shapes with faces. There is nothing I can do with any of them, nothing I can pinpoint or could even try to change. Nor would I know if I </span>
  <em>
    <span>should</span>
  </em>
  <span> do something. Sometimes, they later become… more. But most of them are gone as quickly as they appear.” She took another breath. “So if there is something I might do, I have to at least </span>
  <em>
    <span>try, </span>
  </em>
  <span>even if the visions are fixed. I have to believe that that is why Hydaelyn sent them.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah looked up at Eremia with burning eyes. </span>
  <em>
    <span>And even more so if it’s someone I love,</span>
  </em>
  <span> she thought.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Turning back to Lay, she added in a hard voice, “And that is why I will not give those soulstones back before that vision has come to pass. For now, we need them.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna chewed on her lip, but she clearly wasn’t convinced. Her brow was furrowed, and she glared at M’ajah before she turned to Minfilia.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This will become a problem,” she stated.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia sighed. “I am aware. We cannot let people think that the Scions of the Seventh Dawn are ignoring the law.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Suddenly, M’ajah felt cold and her eyes widened in realization. She hadn’t even thought this far. Her heart started to race, and the tip of her tail whipped through the air as she gathered her courage and said, “I am prepared to leave the Scions so you won’t be implicated.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Next to her, Eremia sucked in a breath, his fingers tightening around hers, but he didn’t say anything.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia gave her a long look, then she shook her head. “No, we’re not there yet. But we will need to find a solution.” With a sigh, she rubbed her delicate fingers over her brow, then she shook her head again and looked at M’ajah and Eremia. “For the moment, I ask that you don’t leave the Waking Sands. Both of you. I know you were supposed to fight Titan with the others tomorrow, but until we had the chance to speak to Kan-E-Senna, please stay put.” Turning to Saran, Nayan, and Adriene, she added, “I do hope you’re in good fighting condition. That primal is not to be underestimated.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Of course,” Saran said somewhat formally before she gave M’ajah a quick smile. “We had an excellent healer with us.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well,” Minfilia said, an eyebrow rising as she tried to hide a smile, “then you better go change now. If I understood Y’shtola and Cassia correctly, there’s a feast at the Costa del Sol tonight before you go on to Titan.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She let her gaze rest on M’ajah as she added, “I wish you would have come to me. I understand why you did what you did, but that does not make it right.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know,” M’ajah answered, holding the Antecedent’s gaze. “But that is also why I didn’t want to involve anyone. It was my plan alone, and I’m prepared to deal with the consequences whatever they might be.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia inclined her head. “We’ll find a solution once we’ve dealt with the primal.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah let go of Eremia’s hand as they walked out of the Solar. She still didn’t quite dare to hope for… anything, really. And they still had his and Thea’s reputation to keep up — even though this was somewhere in the far back of M’ajah’s mind, overshadowed by the horror of her vision. Eremia gave her a sidelong look but didn’t say anything.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Adriene nudged her shoulder as she went by, Saran gave her a smile, and Nayan inclined his head as the three of them walked towards the private quarters. Layanna still looked tense as she waited in the hallway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Listen, M’ajah,” she said, pushing her glasses further up her nose. “It’s not that I don’t understand why you did this. But…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>To M’ajah’s surprise, Eremia didn’t leave, just stood a bit to the side as she gave Layanna an unhappy look.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Lay, if I had any other idea,” she said softly when Lay trailed off, “I would have taken it. Believe me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“The Padjal are not unreasonable people,” Layanna still continued, a nearly pleading tone in her voice, “and I am certain they won’t push your vision aside. They will listen, and—”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Give him a bodyguard?” M’ajah interjected unhappily. “They cannot leave the Twelveswood, so they can’t do it themselves. And it’s not like having yet another fighter at his side will make a difference.” She looked over to where he leaned at the wall, giving him a tiny smile. “It’s not like his fighting skills are in question.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Full glad am I to hear it,” Eremia said a bit dryly, crossing his arms. “I was starting to doubt myself and the impression I left on you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry,” she mumbled, but he just shook his head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t be. In truth, I am both honored and touched that you would go to such lengths just for my sake.” It was said with ease, but there was a burning in his eyes that spoke of the seriousness of his words.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna sighed deeply. “I still cannot help but think that this is making a bad situation worse, despite your best intentions.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m not going to cause the next Calamity,” M’ajah murmured, just half joking. She could see the worry in her friend’s eyes. “I have visions of myself as well, you know.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not what I meant,” Layanna said with a frown before she sighed again. “But I think Minfilia is right. We should focus on Titan first. Reluctant as I am to admit it, you have a level of protection not to be disregarded. I’m sure we’ll find a solution afterwards.” And with a telling look, she added, “Together, this time.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah nodded. She wasn’t convinced that there </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> another solution, but for now, they had won time. Something that was more precious than anything else.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna left to join the others on their trip to the Costa del Sol, and silence fell between M’ajah and Eremia.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah’s heart beat hard as she watched him a bit shyly. He had barely said anything since she had given him the soulstone, and even now, he seemed subdued and serious as he looked at the floor. He had taken her hand in comfort in the Solar, yes, but M’ajah didn’t dare to hope that it meant he would ever forgive her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>From down the hall, the noises of people getting ready for dinner could be heard, and when Eremia still didn’t say anything, M’ajah took heart and cleared her throat.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do you… do you want to join them?” she asked when he looked up at her, motioning towards the common room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No.” His answer was curt, and her heart sank. But Eremia seemed to notice the sharpness of his voice immediately, and let out a breath. “No,” he repeated more softly. “I don’t think I’m in the mood for…” He searched for words for a second, then added, “Pretense.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah nodded, her fingers clasped into each other to stop herself from fidgeting. They just looked at each other for a long moment, the silence returning.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eventually, she couldn’t bear it any longer, and she took a step towards him with a pleading gesture. “Eremia, I-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She interrupted herself as he held up a hand and shook his head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not here,” he said quietly. “Let’s go to my room for some privacy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah just nodded and followed him, unhappiness clinging to her at every step. She could sense his frustration, his anger radiating from him, and even though she had anticipated it, it was painful to know that she was the cause for it. And yet, despite her unhappiness, she still couldn’t bring herself to regret it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Neither said a word as they went back to the private quarters. Eremia held his door open for her, and M’ajah walked in and took a look around. It was only now that she realized that she hadn’t been in here before. When she had given him the soulstone earlier, she had found him in one of the training areas, and before now, they hadn’t visited each other in their rooms. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was a relatively small room, like all the chambers that had been claimed for private use. Most of the people who worked for the Scions had houses or rooms somewhere else in Eorzea — with families or Free Companies — and only used the beds in the shared dormitories when they stayed in the Waking Sands, but a dozen or so had their own rooms. There was a bed, an armoire, a washing table, a weapon’s stand, several shelves mounted on the wall, a writing desk, and not much more space. Eremia still had managed to give it the distinct feeling of it being </span>
  <em>
    <span>his. </span>
  </em>
  <span>On the shelves stood several books among different memorabilia, a few pictures hung on the wall — one a portrait of Rowan and Laen — and on the bed lay a beautiful, colorful blanket that looked worn enough that M’ajah was certain he had brought it with him from Gridania. Maybe something that his mother had made for him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The sound of the door closing behind her shook her out her ruminations, and she turned back to face him. Eremia looked at her with a reservation she wasn’t used to from him. Her heart sank, and M’ajah decided that it would do no good to beat around the bush.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I am sorry, Eremia,” she said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He huffed something that wasn’t quite a laugh. “Yes,” he murmured. “Me too.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He started to walk up and down, his tail flicking from one side to the other. When he stopped after a few paces and turned back to her, she couldn’t quite interpret the look on his face. It wasn’t anger, it wasn’t desperation, it was something in between.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You should have told me,” Eremia said tensely. “You should have told me, but instead, you disappeared without even leaving a note!” There was no mistaking the accusation in his voice for anything else.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I told Lay, didn’t I?” M’ajah said defensively. “And she told you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Another huff as he took a step towards her. “Lay barely knew more than I did. I was worried, Ajah!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She looked at him unhappily. “I… I am sorry, truly, I am. I didn’t mean to worry you.” She just hoped she could make him understand as she told him, “But I was scared that if I didn’t go immediately, I might lose precious minutes. Days, even.” M’ajah swallowed before she added, “And I couldn’t tell you where I was going.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia’s eyes flashed with hurt. “Why? Do you trust me so little?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah desperately shook her head as she walked to him with a pleading gesture. “N-no! Mia, this has nothing to do with trust.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What then?” he hissed, his fangs showing. His ears flicked back and forth as he added, “For every time we are… close, you seem very eager to get away from me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah’s blood rushed in her ears as she slowly shook her head. There was a treacherous burning in her eyes, desperation in her heart. </span>
  <em>
    <span>No. No no no.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not fair,” she eventually managed to say.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Isn’t it?” He made a sharp gesture, taking a few steps away from her. “For the longest time, I didn’t know what to think, you know. You were all aflame one minute and cold the next. Even before we first kissed, you ran from me.” His eyes were burning as he looked at her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah didn’t dare to blink for fear the tears that had started to gather would fall. “I told you why,” she whispered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, and I believe you, but—” Eremia broke off before he turned back to her. This time, she could see the hurt behind his anger. “It pains me, Ajah. Can you not understand that?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She could only nod silently.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That kiss, I thought it was the beginning of… something wonderful,” he said. There was something wistful in his voice, a longing before it turned bitter. “And the next thing I know is that you’re asking me to marry someone else. You know I did it gladly to help Althea, but sometimes it feels like everything is set upon keeping us apart. That night together, it was… incredible. But the next morning, you…” He broke off, looking to the side, his hand balling into a fist.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah finished the sentence very quietly. She knew he was right, and yet, it hurt like hell to say it out loud. “I left.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes. You left. And when I saw you again, with my family…” He stretched his fingers out again, but there was something in his gaze that told her that his anger wasn’t spent yet. “I thought it was a good omen. But then you left. Again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah took another step towards him, an open plea in her eyes and voice. “Mia, I’m not trying to run from you, I promise.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Then why?” he asked, and the anger was back in his voice. “Why leave me behind?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Because I’m trying to save your life!” she called back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia scoffed. “Do you believe that I couldn’t handle it? That I was too weak to join the fight?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” M’ajah whispered, then cleared her throat and repeated more loudly, “No.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why then?” There was another flick of his ears as he added, “Do you think I would have tried to stop you? I am rather fond of living, you know.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I couldn’t let you join!” she shot back. “Or even know about it! Don’t you understand, Mia, Minfilia is right! The elementals or the Padjal might very well demand a life for what I did, and with good reason. I knew that when I went, that's why I didn't tell anyone, not you, not anyone. No-one but me should have to pay the price. But I also know you!” She took another step towards him as she gestured at him. “If you had been there, you would try to take the blame upon yourself afterwards and I couldn’t let that happen! I won’t let you throw away your life just for—” She couldn’t finish her sentence before he interrupted her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So you’re throwing away yours?” Eremia gave her a look that burned straight into her heart. “What makes you think I want to live a stolen life, knowing you traded yours for it? What makes you think a life without you is worth living?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His words nearly broke her heart, but M’ajah couldn’t back down. “So you would have preferred me to do nothing? Should I just have accepted it as fate and waited until all that’s left for me to do is cradle your dead body? To bury you?” She had gotten louder, full of desperation. “I won’t do that, I cannot do that! Not again!” Her voice broke at the words, a sob wrecking through her. “Not again.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Pictures of how she had dug through the ruins of her childhood home came before her eyes, her whole body slick with sweat and blood, knuckles bleeding, arms shaking in the effort to carry wooden beams and rocks too heavy for her, mana depleted. She knew exactly where each of them was, remembered every second of what she had dismissed as a nightmare. Of what she now knew to be truth. Around her, parts of the woods were on fire, burning from the meteors and debris falling from the sky, the heavens alight with the thunder and flames from the battlefield somewhere to the east. She had dug until she could no longer feel her body, until the fires had died and an unnatural cold dusted the grass with frost. Until she had found them, their bodies broken and shattered, and their silence had settled into her heart that was just as broken and shattered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Not again.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know I might have cost you your home,” she continued in a choked voice, wiping a hand over her cheeks, “that even if they get their execution and their soulstones back, they might still exile you. And I wouldn’t blame you if you hated me for that. I know how you love the Twelveswood and your family, I could understand your hatred. I could even bear it. But I’d rather know you live and hate me than know you died without me having tried everything to stop it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She barely saw him move across the room, but the next thing she knew was that she was in his arms, his warm hand cradling her cheek.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hate you?” Eremia asked, shaking his head, his voice thick with emotion. “I could never hate you.” His thumb wiped away a tear, and he pulled her closer, his lips whispering over hers. “I love you, Ajah.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The words tore a sound for her that was both sob and profound relief. She had no longer hoped to hear them from him, but here they were, beautiful and promising, and M’ajah returned his embrace, her whole body shaking.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And I love you,” she murmured, her fingers curling into his hair, tears falling from her lashes as she searched his eyes. “I am sorry, Mia, please believe me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know,” he answered softly. “Me too. But I won’t let you get executed. I won’t. I’d rather never return to Gridania.” A boyish smile came onto his face despite the burning seriousness in his eyes, curling his lips as he added, “If we do get exiled, at least we get exiled together.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her answering smile wavered just slightly. “Together,” she repeated. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia brushed a strand of hair from her face with a loving touch, then he kissed her, making the world disappear around her. Without hesitation, she pulled him closer, forgetting everything but the feeling of his lips on hers, the way his body felt against her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Deep within her, the fear that all she had done, all she had risked still wasn’t enough was an icy claw around her heart. The vision was fixed, so she knew it would happen no matter what she did. All she could hope for was that she had managed to tip the scales for another outcome. For the darkness he would fall into to not be final. It was a faint and desperate hope, but as he kissed the tears from her cheeks and claimed her mouth again, M’ajah pushed it into the far corner of her mind. She had done all she could, she told herself. Now, all that was left was to try and make the most of the time they still had.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Remember the promise you made me?” she whispered breathlessly as he trailed his lips down her throat, sending a whole-body shiver over her skin. Her own hands were already pulling at his shirt.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Which one?” he asked, looking at her with eyes darkened by desire.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You said you’d make me unable to move or talk.” She gave him a smile and tugged on his lower lip with her teeth. “We’re not supposed to leave the Waking Sands anyway, so…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The chuckle coming deep from his throat was full of promise. “Well, I’m nothing if not a man of my word,” he muttered, and when he started to kiss her again, his touches were searing and possessive. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia made good of his promise, and when they fell asleep in each other’s arms sometime in the early hours of the morning, they were both utterly spent.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was already awake when she woke, head propped on one hand, his fingers trailing through her hair and down her naked back. A warm heaviness was still lingering in her limbs as she smiled at him, and she felt sore in the best possible way.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good morning,” she murmured.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“More like good afternoon,” Eremia smiled back. He was already clothed in simple trousers and a shirt, but barefoot. “I brought you some food.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah blinked in surprise at the window through which bright daylight fell. On the table, she saw a plate with various foods; bread, cheese, and fruit. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That late already?” she asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Apparently, you needed the rest.” There was a hint of smugness to Eremia’s voice, and M’ajah chuckled as she snuggled closer to him and pressed a kiss to his lips.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I did just return yesterday from a days-long trip into the depths of a forgotten city,” she teased him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll forgive me if I take at least part of the credit,” he answered, his hand wandering down to cup her ass.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mhm,” M’ajah purred, pushing back into his hand and curling her tail around his arm. A warm shudder ran down her back as she saw the way his eyes narrowed with unveiled desire. “I’ll allow it. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Part</span>
  </em>
  <span> of the credit.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia huffed a disbelieving laugh at the twinkle in her eyes. “Is that another challenge?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her smile widened. “That depends.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“On what?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She fluttered her eyelashes with an overly innocent look. “On whether you’re up for it of course.” An undignified squeal followed by a delighted laugh left her as he abruptly pushed her onto her back, pinning her on the mattress. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Love, you’ll find it’s more of a question whether </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> are up for it,” he said with a growl in his voice that went straight into her core.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Try me,” she murmured hotly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I will,” he gave back and kissed her deeply.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah’s thoughts shattered as he pushed her legs apart and let his fingers trail over the inside of her thigh to where she could already feel the first signs of her arousal. A low moan left her as his lips wandered to her neck and down towards her breasts, making her arch into his touch.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Someone screamed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They froze at the same time, and M’ajah’s eyes fluttered open.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did you hear that?” Eremia asked, ears perking up at the same time as another scream, followed by a low thud, sounded from closer by. They exchanged an alarmed look, the loaded atmosphere from a moment ago dissipating into nothing. Someone was attacking the Waking Sands while most of the Scion’s warriors were out fighting a primal. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were out of the bed in seconds.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia pulled on his boots and already grabbed his bow while M’ajah still collected her clothes. Her eyes were wide as she realized that she had neither staff nor lance in his room. She would have to make due somehow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He hesitated at the door when he saw her still half-naked at the bed, but the sounds of fighting came closer by the second, and she gave him a terse nod.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Go! I’ll be right behind you!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She could see how torn he was, but then he nodded back and was out of the door the next moment. The air vibrated with the magic of his song and lyre even through the door even as she could hear his steps hurry away from her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah struggled into her clothes as fast as she could, then she grabbed a large hunting knife from Eremia’s weapon’s stand and followed him. It would have to do.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Outside the room, the sounds of fighting were much more pronounced, and cold dread washed through M’ajah as she sprinted towards the common rooms where it seemed to be concentrated. The first body she found was A’aba, his eyes open and unseeing as he laid sprawled in his own blood on the floor, twisted in a most unnatural way. It looked like he had been caught running away. There were no weapons in his hand. Something inside M’ajah seemed to come to an abrupt halt as she saw her friend lying dead, horror spreading like ice through her veins, but she forced herself to go on, following the unmistakable sound of Eremia’s music that spurred her on.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But A’aba was not the only one. Aulie lay behind the next corner, horribly still. Another friend.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Most of the dead had no weapons in their hands. They had been caught unaware, in their </span>
  <em>
    <span>home.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Nobody expected enemies here.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Least of all Garleans.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And yet, here they were, their black-and-red uniforms like dried bloodstains in the gloomy light of the Waking Sands. She saw Eremia down one, two Garleans with arrows, fighting alongside Papalymo, Urianger, and a few other Scions.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah had no time to think, to hesitate. With a sharp outcry, she threw herself into the battle, slashing the knife over throats and smashing her elbow into noses and bellies, her magic simmering all around her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But it was no battle. It was a massacre.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were outmanned and outgunned, and the Garleans made quick work of them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Abruptly, Eremia’s song stopped, and realization made M’ajah swirl around, just in time to see his bow break and him stumbling backward.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“NO!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her scream shattered the air at the same time as the shot. A flower of dark red blossomed in the middle of his chest, soaking his shirt, impossibly beautiful before it turned horrible. Eremia touched it tenderly, a look of utter surprise on his face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Time seemed to halt as M’ajah met his gaze for a fraction of a second, and the sorrow and regret in his eyes carved itself into the fragments of her shattered heart. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Another shot, more red, this time at his shoulder, and he fell lifeless to the floor.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>White magic exploded out of M’ajah with a desperate scream, making the enemies around her stumble back, and she flung herself at them like a madwoman, killing all she could lay her hands on before she fell to her knees next to Eremia, her knife clattering to the ground.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mia, Mia, Mia, Mia, please, Mia…” she begged, sobbing, bloodsoaked hands cradling his cheek in panic. He did not react, his eyes closed, his body limp.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Just like A’aba. Just like Aulie.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was so much blood, so horribly much blood, and she pleaded to every God out there as she poured all she had into him, desperately reaching out with her magic to try and stop the bleeding, to repair the disastrous damage she could sense in him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t go, please, please, stay with me,” she whispered over and over, her whole body shaking as she tore every bit of magic she had out of her and into him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>It worked.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah gasped as she could feel it work, could feel the outpour of magic still the gush of blood and start to mend the torn flesh, she could feel—</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Pain and darkness exploded through her, hurtling her forward and away from him as someone struck her over the head from behind.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A low groan fell from her lips as she tried in vain to push herself up. Something thick and hot ran through her hair and down her neck, and blood dripped onto her trembling fingers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, wait, don’t kill her!” she faintly heard someone yell. “The Tribunus wants those who fought Ifrit and I recognize her.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine,” another voice growled. The next moment, someone grabbed her by the hair and pulled her up before they fastened her hands behind her back with heavy shackles.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Black dots danced in front of her eyes as M’ajah whimpered in pain, trying to stay upright while the world swayed around her. She saw Urianger and Papalymo being shackled as well, another Garlean pulling a protesting Tataru forth from her hiding place while someone died in the background.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia lay motionless, blood seeping anew from his wounds.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” she murmured desperately, but already, she was yanked away. “No!”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>
    <span>I don’t know.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Words uttered like a mantra, over and over again, words beaten out of her, out of Minfilia.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Garleans took turns in beating them, the two in their group of prisoners who had the Echo, sometimes making the other watch. M’ajah had lost track of time by now. Sometimes, there were days where nothing happened, where they were just left alone in their cells. Those days, she was happy to just curl into herself in some corner, letting her magic do whatever healing was necessary on herself or on Minfilia while she stared into the darkness and tried not to think. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After what had happened in the Waking Sands, M’ajah couldn’t seem to shake the numbness, the encroaching darkness upon her soul. So many dead, and nothing she had seen in her visions had prepared her. Nothing she had seen had enabled her to protect her friends, the Scions. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Eremia.</span>
  </em>
  <span> On the contrary, everything she had done in her attempts to save him had been for naught.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Hydaelyn's very own way of tormenting her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The snarling Garleans, the endless questions, and the continuous beatings she endured paled in comparison to that darkness within her heart.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Only bits and pieces of the time after she had found her family crushed in their home remained in her memory, but what she did remember was the way she had done what was necessary to survive. And it had helped - the need to find food, shelter, and to protect herself had kept her from hurtling into the abyss that was the grief over her family. There hadn’t been a moment where she wasn’t busy, going on until she collapsed in the night with no time to think about what had happened. But this time, there was nothing to do, nothing that kept the thoughts and the guilt at bay. Nothing that could chase away the nightmares. Nothing but the pain when she was beaten. In a twisted, cruel way, she was grateful for the torture that gave her something else to focus on than the pictures of death her mind conjured.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>During the days, M’ajah barely found her voice, trapped in numbness. Tataru would often speak to her, telling her a myriad of things in an attempt to cheer her up. To give her hope. M’ajah went through all the right motions, reassuring her, nodding and even trying to smile at the right moments. But all of it felt hollow, and more often than not, she couldn’t even recall what Tataru had told her when the silence closed in on them again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>More often than not, she woke with tears upon her cheeks. Tears that wouldn’t come when she was awake. But during the nights, the horror of the Waking Sands mixed with the pain from losing her family, shaking loose all that she had buried deep inside her and threatening to drown her in sorrow and guilt.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She wasn’t the only one with nightmares, she knew. Silence and grief held all of them in their grip. That, and the rage at what had been done to them. M’ajah could see it in Papalymo’s hard gaze, in Urianger’s stiff posture, in the way Minfilia balled her hands to fists, in Tataru’s silence. As the days lengthened into weeks, then months, the rage kept them going even as the Garleans got impatient.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s getting worse,” Minfilia panted when M’ajah healed her at the end of yet another day full of questions and beatings.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know,” M’ajah murmured, her eyes dark as she used her aether to ease the dull pain of black and blue bruises. She had experienced the added force behind the blows herself. The tribunus conducted most of the questioning herself by now, and it looked like she got more and more unhinged. At least there were no cracked bones this time.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘What is the Echo? How did you get it? How does it protect you from the primals? Why you? What did you do to receive it? Why you? </span>
  <em>
    <span>Why you?’</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Questions, useless and unanswerable, over and over again. Questions that had no answer that could possibly satisfy Livia sas Junius, even though M’ajah had by now told her anything she wanted to hear about her ability. She had held on for a week, maybe two, then she had started to break, words spilling like blood over her lips. This way, she had something to tell while keeping the actually important things locked away. Not a whisper of the Church of Saint Adama Landama that would be a sanctuary to the survivors, nor of the different missions the other Scions were on; those who had not been in the Waking Sands during the massacre. It was easy to talk about useless visions that brought no advantage. By now, the tribunus had recognized the uselessness of her questions, but it did nothing to ease the violence. It only made her angrier.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s only a matter of time until she forgets to stop,” Minfilia said, pain in her voice and fear in her eyes. She had never said it out loud before, and even now, it was barely a whisper, only shared with M’ajah.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They exchanged a burning look, then M’ajah focused back on her healing. There was no need to talk. They both knew Minfilia was right. Just like M’ajah knew that when the day came, she’d do all she could to keep Livia focused on herself to get Minfilia out alive. Minfilia was Antecedent, a tactician and politician, and crucial to the Scions while M’ajah was just another soldier who was lucky to have survived the Waking Sands. Unlike Minfilia, she was expendable.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s hope our friends find us in time,” Minfilia added.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah nodded without conviction, but Minfilia’s fingers closed around her arm to make her look up.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They will come, my friend,” Minfilia said. “I know they will. Don’t give up hope.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah nodded again. “I won’t,” she answered softly. It felt like a lie.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The day Livia beat M’ajah unconscious was the day the tribunus seemed to lose interest in either her or Minfilia. M’ajah woke with a headache that sent hot spikes of pain throughout her with every beat of her heart and made moving near impossible. The right side of her body seemed to consist of nothing but pain, and her eye was swollen shut. She faintly remembered baiting Livia away from Minfilia and being tossed against a wall, followed by kicking that had her gasp for air until a kick against her face hurtled her into unconsciousness.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They even sent a healer,” Tataru told her, pressing a cool cloth against her face. M’ajah could see in her swollen red-rimmed eyes that she had cried. “He assured us you’ll make a full recovery. For some reason, they don’t want us dead.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Min… fi…” M’ajah whispered. Her lips were cracked and bloody and she was pretty sure she had bit her own tongue at some point.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She’s fine. Bruised, but fine,” Tataru assured her and held up a cup to her lips. “Here, drink this, it’s to dull the pain. Minfilia says it actually helps.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The draught was bitter and bit into the tiny wounds it touched, but M’ajah forced it down. There was no mana left she could have used, so it was the only source of comfort apart from the damp cloth Tataru used and the blissful embrace of unconsciousness into which she sank shortly after. But despite the pain, she was still alive. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At least until Livia would come back for them. M’ajah knew there would probably not be another wakening once that happened.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Except, Livia didn’t come back. Three days later, she still hadn’t returned to finish what she had started, and M’ajah could move again without wanting to scream. She still couldn’t see through her eye and most of her body was some shade of black or blue, but at least she had ascertained that nothing was damaged beyond repair.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How are you holding up, my friend?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia’s soft voice came from next to her, and M’ajah turned her head to look at her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll live,” she answered equally quietly. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Unlike…</span>
  </em>
  <span> She stopped the unbidden thought before it could surface wholly. But nothing could stop the mental image of Eremia’s unmoving form, her bloodied hands in vain trying to stop the bleeding.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia’s next words pulled her out of the horrid thought. “Good. You need to promise me that you’ll keep living, M’ajah.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah paused into utter stillness as she stared at Minfilia with her good eye. “Wha-” she started, but the other woman interrupted her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Livia wasn’t done,” she said, pain in her eyes. “When you fell unconscious. I still refused to tell her anything, and so, she will have me transferred to Castrum Meridianum for… studying.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Studying?” M’ajah looked at her in horror. “What does she mean by ‘studying’?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I dread to think about it,” Minfilia murmured. “But I will do everything for it to only be me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, Minfilia, you cannot-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia interrupted her again with a sharp shake of her head. “I have a duty,” she said, “a duty to all of you, and I will not fail it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Minfilia, why are you telling me this now?” M’ajah asked helplessly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I heard the guards talk. The transfer will be today.” A smile came onto the Antecedent’s face. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed what you did the last time. My friend, you took the brunt of Livia’s ire deliberately, you kept her away from me. But I ask you now to not do it again. Let them take me and be safe with the others. Please.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The heavy door to their cell opened at that moment, preventing M’ajah from giving her an answer. Minfilia gave her a short nod and another smile and already stood, turning so they could cuff her hands behind her back. Just a moment later, M’ajah was pulled up as well, nausea welling up at the sudden movement, then she stumbled after the others, Minfilia’s words still swirling in her head. She had sworn to keep Minfilia alive, but not only had the Antecedent asked her to keep back, but every step made it clear that she probably wouldn't be able to do anything whether she wanted to or not. Nausea and dizziness made it hard to walk upright and she had trouble focusing her gaze.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But if she didn't manage to step in, Minfilia might die.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>What was she to do?</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>Eremia shifted his weight slightly and rolled his shoulder with a barely suppressed flinch as he looked back over the Castrum courtyard while Biggs worked on the lock of the huge doors. Even after all these weeks and the healing Layanna and he himself had done, the scars the terrible wounds on his chest and shoulder had left were sore and easily irritated. And moving his arm came with certain caveats. Layanna had assured him it would only take time until he would be able to fully draw his bow again, but time was the one thing they didn’t have.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Not while their friends were locked away somewhere here in Castrum Centri, at the mercy of the Garleans. While </span>
  <em>
    <span>M’ajah</span>
  </em>
  <span> was in there.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But despite the fact that they had lost so many people and could use every hand they had, it had taken him quite some convincing until the others had let him participate.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You are still not at full strength, Mia,” Althea had reminded him with a look of worry in her eyes. “And we cannot-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I won’t be in the way, Thea,” he had cut her short. “I am not so short-sighted that I would risk the success of this mission just for my need to take revenge.” And his need was great indeed. In fact, it was burning inside him with the might of the sun over Thanalan. “But I cannot sit back and just do </span>
  <em>
    <span>nothing!</span>
  </em>
  <span> Not here, not now! I already stayed out of the fight against Garuda, but not this time. I </span>
  <em>
    <span>cannot.”</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He half expected the others to say something along the lines of ‘healing is not doing nothing’, but for the longest time, nobody said anything.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eventually, Bryanne had given him a short nod. “I couldn’t either.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that was that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Having a staff instead of a bow at his side still felt wrong, but he knew it was the only way he could be of at least some use in this operation.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The doors opened and his heart skipped a beat as they saw the prisoners, apparently bound and ready for transport. At first, he couldn’t spot M’ajah, all attention drawn to Minfilia who had put herself between the guards and the other Scions.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Minfilia… and the others! Thank goodness they’re safe,” he heard Biggs mutter.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Safe might be an overstatement,” Bryanne muttered, her eyes darkening behind the Garlean helmet she wore. “Look at her.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia bared his teeth in a barely suppressed growl as he saw the bruises where the Antecedent’s skin was exposed. She stepped forward, Tataru hiding behind her. Eremia’s eyes raced over the others. Urianger and Papalymo stood a bit back from them and seemed none the worse for wear, but Thancred was nowhere to be seen. M’ajah… </span>
  <em>
    <span>there.</span>
  </em>
  <span> His heart skipped a beat as he saw her standing half-hidden behind Urianger. She was swaying slightly, her face half concealed by her hair. Worry exploded through him at the way she held herself and his hand tightened around his staff. Something was wrong. He needed to get to her, to them all, now!</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Already, he was taking a step forward, but a hand closed around his arm, holding him back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait,” Althea warned, giving him a short shake of her head. “Wait for the right moment.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I am the one you want!” Minfilia’s voice carried to them, full of anger. “Leave the others be!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The guards exchanged a look, then one of them shrugged. “Orders are orders,” he said and took a step forward to reach for Tataru, but Minfilia got into his way.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If you harm my friends, I </span>
  <em>
    <span>swear</span>
  </em>
  <span> I shall take my own life - and you shall answer to your mistress!” she hissed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s enough,” the guard barked, drawing his weapon. Clearly, he didn’t care much for Minfilia’s threats.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“T-tataru! We need to do something!” Wedge whispered desperately, but Biggs looked doubtful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We risk letting the whole castrum know we’re here,” he said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If we don’t do something </span>
  <em>
    <span>now,</span>
  </em>
  <span> we might lose any chance we had,” Eremia countered, his eyes still glued to what was happening inside. The leader of the guard seemed to be receiving orders via linkpearl, and the rest was waiting for his command.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Thea gave a sharp nod, exchanging a look with Bryanne. “He’s right. We might not get a better chance. Let’s do it.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They had the element of surprise on their side, and so, the fight was short. While the others fought the guards, bolstered by both his and Layanna’s regeneration spells, Eremia rushed to Papalymo, Urianger, and M’ajah while Lay went to help Minfilia and Tataru.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Untie us,” Papalymo called out with a glint in his eyes, already running towards him, and he quickly laid a hand onto the shackles binding the Lalafell’s hands and let a burst of aether surge through them, overloading the magitech lock. It clicked open and Papalymo nodded in grim satisfaction, his magic surging forward and through one of the guards who came at them with raised sword.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The sword clattered useless to the ground while Eremia continued to Urianger and M’ajah. The elezen only gave him a short nod as Eremia freed him, but M’ajah still hadn’t seen him. When the fighting began, he had seen her stumble a step back and lean heavily against a wall, and now…</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia barely spared a glance at the others as he sent his magic out in a warm wave that touched every one of his friends and sent a burst of healing through them, then he knelt down next to M’ajah who sat on the ground, head leaning against the wall, and reached for her shackles. A second later, they fell heavily to the ground and he saw her fingers flex.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ajah,” he said, his voice full of fear and relief.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes,” she murmured, taking a deep breath as she finally turned to look at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The noise of the fight around him dimmed to nothing as he saw what had been done to her. Her right eye was swollen shut nearly completely and a deep, vicious-looking laceration on her temple had clearly not been treated. Beneath the dark, purple bruises, she was pale, and her gaze was slightly unfocused.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>What did they do to her?!</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rage and terror surged through him, and with another whisper of her name, he reached for her. But before he could touch her, she wiped his arm aside and pushed herself up, using the wall to help herself into a standing position. Eremia blinked in confusion, but she was already looking away. The fight was over, the few guards lying motionless on the floor.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Where’s Minfilia?” she asked hoarsely, bracing herself with one hand against the wall as she swayed. “They cannot take her.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They won’t,” Eremia reassured her softly, catching himself before he reached for her again. Everything in his heart yearned to pull her into his arms, to hold her close, to show his very soul that she was alright, that they were both alright - but the way she had stopped even the first touch had been unmistakable. She did not want his proximity. His heart was painfully heavy. Did she blame him for not being here with him? Did she… </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His thoughts were interrupted by Minfilia hurrying towards them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m here,” Minfilia said, rubbing her wrists and giving M’ajah a warm smile before she looked at the others. “It was foolish of you to come. You could have been killed!” The relief written all over her face belied her admonishing words, and her next sentence held everything her eyes already told them. “But thank you. I shudder to think what might have happened had you not arrived when you did.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Papalymo looked around, then asked, “I say, did you not see Thancred anywhere? I’m beginning to fear for the fellow…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We thought he was with you,” Saran said, her whole body tense and her eyes full of worry.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“To linger here shall yield us no answer,” Urianger said darkly. “Let us away, ere the window to our liberty closes shut.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Minfilia nodded. “Can you walk?” she asked M’ajah.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Instead of an answer, M’ajah pushed herself off the wall and balled her fists as she swayed slightly. “I can do anything it takes to get out of here,” she said in a stiff voice.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No need,” Bryanne interjected. “We have a reaper. Minfilia, Tataru, M’ajah, get on there. Urianger, Papalymo, you might want to disguise yourself. Let’s go.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With a heavy heart, Eremia noted how M’ajah didn’t even spare him a glance as Biggs unceremoniously lifted the three women into the reaper. Taking a deep breath, he forced his thoughts away from his hurt and confusion. They needed to get out of the Castrum, then they would have time to talk.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They just needed time.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They managed to get out of the castrum with minimum difficulties, and once they were rejoined by Yda, Y’shtola, and the others, they got rid of the Garlean disguises before they hurried to Revenant’s Toll.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The reaper caused some confusion and excitement in the Aetheryte place, but Eremia barely paid the people around them any attention as he instinctively steadied M’ajah when she swayed as Biggs put her down.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I got you,” he murmured when she flinched, but as he tried to nudge her to walk towards the Rising Stones, she resisted, a small sound falling from her lips that was neither groan nor sigh.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Unhappily, he looked at her. “I…” </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m just trying to help,</span>
  </em>
  <span> he wanted to say, but the expression on her face made him pause.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her good eye was wide in terror and a strange, wild hope and she had turned even paler as she stared at him.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Did…” she stammered tonelessly, “did she kill me? Did Livia kill me after all?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia’s eyes widened. “What? No, Ajah,” he assured her, his heart clenching as she raised her hand and he could see it was trembling. “No, we’re in Revenant’s Toll. We’re safe here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her next words were uttered with such pain and helplessness that it cut deep into his heart. “But you’re dead.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A long breath left him as he finally understood. She had thought him dead. A mix of pain and bitter compassion went through him as he realized that throughout those last dark weeks and months in Garlean captivity, throughout the torture and agony, she had thought her vision had come true. Eremia knew her well enough to realize the guilt and misery that had to have come with that thought.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, love,” he said softly, a smile coming onto his lips as her trembling fingers touched his cheek. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The next second, she went slack in his arms, a sigh his only warning that she was about to lose consciousness, and with an alarmed sound, he caught her just in time before she could fall to the ground. His shoulder protested violently as he lifted her up and carried her inside, but when Cid offered to help, he just shook his head. He would not let go of her again.</span>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <span>The first thing M’ajah noted when she opened her eyes again was the lack of pain. Over the last weeks, she had gotten used to all kinds of pain - stiffness from sleeping on the cold floor, the dull burn of bruises or cracked ribs, the sharp flare of cuts, and the agony behind the blackness in her heart.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But as she blinked into the surprising warmth of natural light falling through a window, she felt nothing but a faint ache in the right side of her body. She still couldn’t see properly through her right eye, but the feeling of laying on a bed of clouds and feathers and the sluggishness of her thoughts told her that she was probably heavily dosed with painkillers. She was still tired like never before, but all of that faded away as she realized who was next to her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ajah,” Eremia said, his whole being lighting up as he saw that she was awake. Immediately, he slid from the chair he had been sitting on and sank to his knees next to the bed, grabbing her hand tightly and pressing a kiss into her palm.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her voice seemed to come from far away. “You’re alive.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was all she could think of, all she could manage. It felt surreal, seeing him here next to her. She had seen, had </span>
  <em>
    <span>felt </span>
  </em>
  <span>his life slip out of him, and yet here he was with that beloved smile on his handsome face. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Told you’d not get rid of me that easily,” he smiled, pressing his cheek into her palm. “But I’ll not deny it was a close call. Your soulstone and Lay’s training tipped the balance. You saved my life.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was hard to breathe around the relief that rose in her, and yet, she felt so light as if she could fly. The horrible burden of guilt and resentment, of pain and grief, had lifted from her heart, and she couldn’t have stopped the tears if she tried. It had worked after all! Eremia was alive. One life less on her conscience.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought I lost you,” she whispered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia shook his head as he carefully wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Never.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah sighed deeply, more tears running down her cheeks and dropping into the pillow. “Don’t make promises you cannot keep,” she murmured hoarsely, images of dead friends appearing before her eyes. So many dead. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The smile on his face wavered slightly as he understood where her mind had gone, and his ears drooped a bit. “Not if I can help it, at least,” he amended more softly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The first honest smile in weeks bloomed on her lips. “Good.” The word was barely audible, and when she tried to reach for him, to touch him, her limbs felt heavy as lead. If only she wasn’t so tired.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sleep, Ajah,” she heard him say as she drifted off again. “I’ll be here when you wake.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>And so he was. The next time she woke, it was dark, and he was sleeping in the chair next to her bed, wrapped in a blanket, his tail curled around him. For a while, M’ajah just looked at him, the feelings of relief and happiness inside her chest nearly too overwhelming. After all the darkness of the last weeks, it seemed too good to be true.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It took her a moment to realize that she had full vision again, and as she raised her hand to her face to feel for the swelling that had closed her eye, she found it gone nearly completely. She was still a bit sore, but it was no comparison to the dull pain of the last days. The cut on her forehead was healing well and when she sat up and checked her body, she saw that the bruises that had been black and blue when last she looked had turned to greenish purple and yellow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We kept you asleep for a few days,” a soft voice from the other side of the room said. M’ajah startled as she only now noticed Layanna - and a moment later, she realized that the sharp gesture had not made her dizzy in the least. Lay gave her a smile and came over.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You had a bad concussion and a few broken ribs. It was good that we got you out when we did. How are you feeling?” she asked quietly, stretching her hand out over M’ajah and sending a soothing burst of magic through her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Much better,” M’ajah answered truthfully. There was a strange shyness inside her as she looked at her friend and for a moment, she didn’t know what to say. Eventually, she settled for, “How are Minfilia and the others?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“They are fine,” Lay assured her. “Urianger, Papalymo, and Tataru were a bit malnourished but otherwise fine. Minfilia refused to stay in bed any longer and has been up and about since yesterday, but I’m making sure she’s getting enough rest.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why aren’t you resting?” M’ajah asked before she could think better of it. “If my eyes aren’t deceiving me, it’s the middle of the night.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna chuckled softly. “Just checking on my patients.” Her eyes went to Eremia and softened. “He’s been here the whole time, watching over you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah followed her eyes and smiled lovingly. Eremia was still sound asleep. “I’m lucky to have him,” she murmured.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, you are.” There was something wistful in Layanna’s voice that made M’ajah perk up, but when she looked at her, Lay was already getting up again. “I’m going to get some sleep myself,” she said, giving M’ajah a smile while smoothing her skirt with both hands. “It’s good to see you better.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Lay,” M’ajah started hesitantly before the other woman left. “Are… people mad at me?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her heart thumped hard in her chest at the question, but she needed to know.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna drew her brows together. “Because of the soulstones? Honestly, I haven’t even thought about that in weeks. We’ll still have to tell the padjal, of course, but-”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No,” M’ajah interrupted her, her fingers clenching into the blanket. Layanna looked at her questioningly. “No, I mean because I didn’t know what would happen. Because… so many died,” she whispered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna’s eyes widened. “Oh, M’ajah, no,” she said with a shake of her head. “Nobody blames you for what happened. We all know one cannot control which vision we get. This is not your fault.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>M’ajah bit her lip and just nodded. She wasn’t so sure about it but hearing it helped nonetheless.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Layanna gave her a smile. “Try to find some more rest. I’ve put some regeneration upon you as well, so you should be able to get up tomorrow. Good night.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good night,” M’ajah mumbled, sinking back into the pillows.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Darkness and silence closed around her as Lay took the candle with her, but other than the coldness in the Garlean cell, it was a soothing one. Eremia was so close that she could touch him without getting up, and with loving touches, she brushed a strand of hair from his face. He barely moved, just a little twitch of his ears showing that somewhere unconsciously, he registered the touch. It sent a bout of warmth through her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But despite that, she was unable to fall asleep again, and eventually, she gave up. Carefully and slowly, she got up and once she was sure she wouldn’t get dizzy, wrapped the blanket around her shoulders and walked over to the window to look out across the small settlement. Revenant’s Toll, Eremia had called it if she remembered correctly. From behind the tall town walls, she could see a faint shimmering that spoke of crystals in the area beyond.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A sudden movement and sharp intake of breath behind her made her look back to see Eremia startle awake.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m here,” she called softly as she saw him look frantically over the empty bed and towards the door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His head whipped around and a relieved sigh left him as he saw her, then he threw his blanket off and came towards her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You thought I left again, didn’t you?” she asked with a somewhat crooked smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia clicked his tongue. “If you had seen yourself these last few days, you’d be alarmed too when the bed is suddenly empty.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He seemed unsure for a moment how to approach her, but M’ajah didn’t even think about it before she stepped into his arms. The blanket fell from her shoulders and onto the ground as she buried her face at his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her to hold her close. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was so worried,” he murmured into her hair.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I mourned you,” she answered softly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Eremia chuckled. “Alright, you win.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The sound was so full of ease and amusement that M’ajah couldn’t help but chuckle as well, her eyes shining as she looked up at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you,” she said. She had told him before, but somehow it felt even more sincere now, after she had fought for him and lost him, mourned him and found him again - or rather, had been found by him. In a way, the words seemed inadequate for the intensity within her heart that soared through her as he cradled her cheek with his hand and gave her a soft smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I love you too, Ajah,” he murmured, his eyes burning into hers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Do we still need to hide ourselves and our feelings?” she asked. She wasn’t sure she would be able to after everything they had been through.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But Eremia shook his head. “I don’t think so. Things are… different now after the attack. And it’s been a while, we haven’t noticed any special interest in Althea anymore. She also pointed out that should someone be weird about anything, all we need to do is say that this is a mutual thing between all of us. But I doubt it’ll be necessary.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So we can…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Openly be together, yes,” he said with a wide smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And then he finally kissed her. When their lips met, she melted against him, her tail curling around his, unable to bear even the smallest distance between them. As she lost herself in his kiss, her very soul alight beneath his touches, she felt for the first time that there was a future for them. A future unburdened by visions and knowledge she shouldn’t have, a future that was wide open for both of them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A future together.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Come talk to me on <a href="https://elveny.tumblr.com">Tumblr</a> :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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